The Favored Heiress
Chapter 414: I Like You Too

Chapter 414: Chapter 414: I Like You Too

Li Qiao bit into her bun and looked at her, pondering for a while before shaking her head, "I don’t think so. Have you heard of Shang Shaoyan, the South Sea merchant?"

Xia Siyu was stunned and, at the same time, let out a sigh of relief.

So... it wasn’t Yun Lih.

Li Qiao saw her indescribable expression and raised her eyebrows, her demeanor becoming a lot more animated, "What’s with that look on your face?"

Xia Siyu barely swallowed the filling of her bun and rubbed her forehead, "How did you end up getting yourself a ’dad’?"

Li Qiao: "???"

Shang Yu was not much older, only five years her senior.

Before Li Qiao could retort, Xia Siyu spoke faintly, "And a ’dad’ who is ruthless and heartless at that..."

But, indeed, he was good-looking.

Considering Xiao Qi Zai’s preference for handsome faces, it wasn’t too surprising.

Xia Siyu had seen Shang Shaoyan, and at least so far, even Yun Lih couldn’t compare in terms of looks.

Setting aside his charm and poise for a moment, that man had a powerful aura which made him the center of attention wherever he went.

At that moment, Li Qiao finished her bun and glanced at the daydreaming Xia Siyu, "Do you know him?"

Xia Siyu was dazed for a couple of seconds, "My dad knows him; I met him once at a party my dad attended a long time ago."

To be honest, from that gathering of hundreds of people, the scene of the man descending from the second floor is still vivid in her memory.

He enjoyed the full attention of everyone present, at the same time holding an air of superiority that was beyond reach.

Fittingly, it blended perfectly with the intimidating aura that was an intrinsic part of him.

Just based on physical appearance, that man was indeed a match for Li Qiao.

Xia Siyu looked at her thoughtfully, "So why did you two have a fight then?"

Li Qiao caressed her fingertips, not really wanting to dissect her inner feelings again, so she responded in a lukewarm tone, "It’s nothing serious."

Last night, emotions had the upper hand, which explained the overflow of intense feelings that eventually led to self-doubt.

No one is born skilled in matters of love; even with her cold demeanor, she couldn’t remain indifferent in that explosive moment of emotion.

The man was arrogant and overbearing, and so was she.

In reality, the root of her anger was simply that he had been hurt and didn’t tell her.

The point was the injury.

...

At five minutes past six, Li Qiao and Xia Siyu left the rooftop.

Outside, they continued to maintain the distance and demeanor of strangers.

After confirming multiple times that Li Qiao was not too badly affected, Xia Siyu soon walked away from the hostel in her high heels.

The streets in the early morning were clean and peaceful, her steps slow on the sidewalk as the large palm leaves above shaded the thin sunlight.

Yun Lih, ah...

Just a moment ago, when she heard Li Qiao mention having a boyfriend, she inexplicably thought of Yun Lih.

The relationship between the Border Seven Sons and Yun Lih was both that of disciples and friends; more precisely, it was Li Qiao who introduced Yun Lih to everyone.

Xia Siyu stopped in her tracks, repeating Yun Lih’s name over and over in her heart.

Nobody knew that three years ago, after Huizai’s death and right before their separation, she visited Yun Lih’s room on the evening of their last day together.

About to go their separate ways, she was determined to confess her feelings to him.

But to her surprise, the drunken Yun Lih mistook her for Li Qiao, holding her, he said, "Qiaoqiao, can you stop seeing me as just a master; can you like me..."

If it weren’t for the alcohol, Yun Lih would never have spoken those words.

Xia Siyu had never imagined that Yun Lih had been fond of Li Qiao for so long...

This man was too secretive, so much so that none of the Border Seven Sons had noticed his feelings.

At this moment, Xia Siyu looked up at the palm leaves above her head, with a hint of self-mockery at the corners of her mouth.

She had confessed her feelings to Yun Lih, but... it was also that night, with tears in her eyes, she had murmured countless times in his ear, "I like you too."

...

At eight in the morning, Li Qiao went back to her room to take a shower and change clothes before heading to the hall to meet with her colleagues.

Luoyu followed her closely, her expression unreadable. After much hesitation, she finally asked softly, "Miss Li, are you alright?"

She knew that Li Qiao had returned to the South Sea last night, and from her arrival to her departure, she had been extremely restrained.

Therefore, seeing Li Qiao this morning acting as if nothing had happened, she couldn’t help but ask.

Li Qiao paused mid-step and glanced at her, "Do I look like something is wrong?"

It was just a small tiff after all, she wouldn’t let such a trivial matter cause her to frown and affect others.

Luoyu observed her carefully for a moment, then looked down and shook her head, "The boss’s injury was no accident, he asked me to tell you not to worry, it will all be okay."

Li Qiao looked down at her phone with a smile that was not quite a smile, "Why are you the one telling me?"

It had been ten hours since last night.

After she left, there were no phone calls, no messages from him.

She assumed he needed to rest because he was injured.

Now, he had Luoyu telling her that the injury wasn’t an accident.

This man... was truly irritating.

Seeing Luoyu speechless, Li Qiao curled her lip and said no more.

Watching her tensely furrowed profile, Luoyu took out her phone and sent a WeChat message to Liuyun: I can’t soothe her, but you can, you come.

Liuyun: If I go to soothe Miss Li, are you sure the boss won’t kill me?

Luoyu: How do you know if you don’t try?

Liuyun: Thank you, but I don’t want to die.

...

The symposium today was about to start showcasing the research achievements of the major laboratories.

Because nearly twenty research results were brought by thirteen laboratories, Renhe Laboratory where Li Qiao worked was scheduled for the second half of tomorrow.

So, Li Qiao spent the whole day dozing off in the audience while listening to the presentations.

Shang Qiongying had been quite quiet these days - so quiet, in fact, that one might get the impression she was just there to host the symposium.

As evening approached, the reporting of the seven laboratories was completed, with several drug research and development attracting the interest of pharmaceutical companies.

Academician Jiang flipped through his notebook, his expression more troubled than ever, "There’s still a gap."

Li Qiao and Lian Zhen had always been sitting on either side of him. Hearing his melancholic tone, Lian Zhen asked, "Teacher is referring to...?"

"The few laboratories that reported today have not only delved into human genetics research but also developed several drugs specifically for gene therapy and stabilization.

Compared to them, our Renhe Laboratory’s research results indeed do not have much of an advantage, especially since Xiao Guan’s condition has improved but without immediate effect."

Academician Jiang was an academic at heart and naturally hoped that this academic event would propel the research projects of Renhe Laboratory to the forefront of medicine.

Now it seemed that Renhe still wasn’t quite ready for the stage.

At that, Lian Zhen’s face twisted uncomfortably as he pressed his lips together, uncertain how to comfort Academician Jiang.

Li Qiao, who had just woken up from a nap, was standing with one hand on her chest and the other lightly rubbing her forehead, "Teacher, you’re overthinking it. Even if Guan Mingyu’s condition hasn’t fully recovered, Renhe’s research on the genetic mutations unique to her case is still unparalleled."