Back Then, I Adored You

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

After smoking half of the cigarette, Gu Yusheng stubbed it out and stood in front of the window with his hands in his pant pockets. He stared outside and thought about her again.

When he had fallen for little troublemaker, he didn’t know much about relationships.

He had not understood what it was like to miss someone so dearly until he was apart from her.

He well knew that she was not around and could not hear him, but he would still murmur things to her whenever he missed her late at night.

“Little troublemaker, where are you? How are you?”

“Little troublemaker, I met a girl today. Her eyes look like yours.”

“Little troublemaker, I’m buying a game company because that girl I met wants to work for that company. And I’m not even interested in developing games.”

“Little troublemaker, Bancheng is right. This is not a good time to buy out a game company, but he doesn’t know I can’t stand to wait for you any longer. I need to find you.”

“Little troublemaker, I’m not going to give up on finding you. That’s why I’m coming back to Beijing. Don’t worry. No matter how much my grandpa pressures me, I will never marry Liang Doukou.”

“Little troublemaker, I miss you so much…”

After realizing he had just said those last words out loud, Gu Yusheng sadly looked through the glass, where little troublemaker’s beautiful eyes looked back at him.

As he stared at those eyes, her forehead, nose, lips, and full face began to fill in around them.

He stared at the face until it was complete and matched another face in his head. It was that of the girl student he had seen that afternoon.

It was strange. Since childhood, Gu Yusheng had barely remembered anyone’s face after just one encounter. He remembered her face, though, even when he couldn’t remember little troublemaker’s face.

She was the first and only one whose face stayed with him.

Gu Yusheng felt his heart beating fast, racing in fact, as though it would jump out of his chest.

The girl student had looked so sweet. Little troublemaker had sex appeal. The student was so different from little troublemaker, but still he couldn’t forget her face.

Then, he saw little troublemaker’s eyes.

Gu Yusheng tensed his lips.

Little troublemaker, do you think this girl is you?

…

The next morning, Xiaowang arrived at the Four Seasons Hotel and waited for Gu Yusheng.

Gu Yusheng walked downstairs at 8:00 a.m., timed precisely for his 10:00 a.m. flight.

After checking out, Gu Yusheng got in the car, and Xiaowang headed to the airport.

After Xiaowang had driven half-way, Gu Yusheng said, “I’m going back to Shanghai by myself.”

“What?” Xiaowang looked up with a perplexed look on his face. He met Gu Yusheng’s eyes in the rearview mirror.

Gu Yusheng ignored his question, grabbed a file next to him, and tossed it on the passenger seat. “I was up all night putting this together. You need to read it later—closely—and then contact Hui Shui’s CEO and make an offer. Don’t hold back. In the end, I must have that company.”

“What?” Xiaowang was shocked.

Buying out a company was a big deal, and Gu Yusheng hadn’t mentioned any of this before now. Making this decision overnight seemed too quick.

Having spent so much time with Gu Yusheng in Shanghai, Xiaowang felt comfortable enough to joke, “Master Gu, it’s not April Fool’s Day, is it?”

“Are you saying I’m a fool?” Gu Yusheng casually asked as he glanced at Xiaowang in the mirror.