Unforgettable Love: The CEO 's Golden Cage

Chapter 10

Behind him was a small round table with mulled wine and various drinks. After a brief pause, his pleasant voice addressed Wei Yizhi: "Miss Wei, what would you like to drink?"

Wei Yizhi turned with a sweet smile, standing up and placing a hand on Kaiyin's shoulder: "Sister, how about you?"

Kaiyin gave a reserved smile: "Orange juice, please."

"Alright."

Wei Yizhi went over to where Tang Ze was with a beaming smile, rummaging through the ice bucket for the drinks she and Kaiyin wanted.

At the table, Jiang Fanbi finally introduced her to Kaiyin: "This is Yizhi, my youngest daughter. She’s just a freshman."

Kaiyin smiled: "I see. She’s very lovely."

Suddenly, Wei Yizhi’s chair was pulled back by a slender hand. Kaiyin instinctively turned her head, only to collide with the vastness of his clear pupils.

Expressionless, he glanced at her before coldly taking Wei Yizhi’s seat. He casually set down the ashtray he had brought over from the sofa, then turned his head away from Kaiyin to light a cigarette.

In that moment, the cheerful atmosphere at the table shifted once more.

When Wei Yizhi returned with the drinks, she found her seat occupied by Song Xiao. Strangely, even if they were siblings, as the younger sister, she clearly didn't dare to act out or protest against her brother.

Holding the drinks, she stood there, unsure of what to do.

From the head of the table, Jiang Fanbi suddenly said to her: "Yizhi, go sit by your aunt."

Wei Yizhi had never felt more invisible. She set down Kaiyin’s drink, and without even responding to Kaiyin’s thanks, she quietly retreated to an empty seat on the opposite side.

***

Song Xiao leaned back against his chair, his expression unreadable. He had taken off his overcoat, and the grey turtleneck sweater accentuated his elegant chin and slender neck. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows; one hand was tucked into his trouser pocket, while the other rested on the edge of the table, a burning cigarette held between his index and middle fingers.

Though the atmosphere was stiff and cold, for Jiang Fanbi, it felt like a harmonious family reunion. She smiled: "Please, eat."

As dinner began, a young man at the table opened a bottle of red wine and stood up to fill Song Xiao’s glass. However, Song Xiao coolly covered the top of his glass with his hand, his fingers still holding the cigarette.

"No, thank you."

"Has second brother quit drinking?" the man teased as he poured for others.

In a rare move, Song Xiao glanced up lazily and gave a slight shake of his head without saying a word. His languid gaze seemed to swirl around his cigarette like smoke, but his peripheral vision appeared to be fixed elsewhere.

"Ms. Xiao, please don't be formal," Jiang Fanbi hosted Kaiyin.

Kaiyin gave a gentle smile. To avoid being pampered by the Jiang family, she picked up the orange juice Wei Yizhi had left by her plate, intending to open it.

The room was very warm. Having applied hand cream earlier, her hands were now slightly damp with sweat, making it impossible to get a good grip.

Song Xiao, leaning back quietly with a distant look, seemed indifferent, but his peripheral vision never left her as she struggled with the bottle cap. Because he was distracted watching her, his focus wavered when someone else spoke to him.

"What are you thinking about?" another man laughed.

Song Xiao regained his composure, stretching his arm to flick some ash into the tray. He looked up with a nonchalant indifference: "What did you say?"

"I asked when you're going to bring a girlfriend home."

Everyone was interested in this question, especially Jiang Fanbi. Though she didn't dare initiate a conversation, she looked at Song Xiao with longing.

***

His eyes, as clear as spring water, naturally lowered, noticing once more that she still hadn't opened the bottle. His expression remained unchanged, undisturbed. Looking up again, he replied casually: "In a while."

The man who asked opened his eyes wide in surprise: "So, that means you're actually dating someone?"

"...Mhm." After that airy response, he suddenly narrowed his eyes, placing the cigarette between his lips. Then, he turned and, without warning, took the bottle of orange juice—the one Kaiyin was helpless against—right out of her hands.

Kaiyin froze.

The table fell into a dead silence.

Song Xiao unscrewed the cap, then lightly twisted it back on just enough to prevent a spill before placing it back in front of her.

******

"…Thank you," Kaiyin said.

He looked at her sideways, his gaze lingering for a moment before coldly pulling away. Though his expression remained arrogant, it held an undeniable softness.

He exhaled a smoke ring as thin as a cicada’s wing, then took another deep drag. To the surprise of everyone at the table, he looked down with a relaxed air, but out of the corner of his eye, he was watching her. He saw her pour the orange juice and take a drink. When he finally looked up again with a lazy gaze, a fleeting smile actually touched the corners of his lips.

Seeing that he was in a good mood, Jiang Fanbi ventured a question: "CEO Song, how old is she? Where is her home?"

She hadn't actually expected him to answer, so when Song Xiao took on a thoughtful expression, Jiang Fanbi was genuinely delighted. He narrowed his eyes, pulling his wandering gaze back from a distant point, and replied simply: "You should find her to your liking."

As he looked away from Jiang Fanbi, his gaze inadvertently brushed past Kaiyin once more, unnoticed by anyone else.

At the banquet table, the fine porcelain clinked together, creating a sound as pleasant as bells. Jiang Fanbi took extraordinary care of Kaiyin, displaying the perfect politeness and thoroughness of a hostess. She instructed Aunt Yun to serve two bowls of freshly simmered old duck soup to Kaiyin and Song Xiao. She also constantly used her serving chopsticks to place food on Kaiyin’s plate. Kaiyin, who generally felt uncomfortable with such intense hospitality, found the situation quite awkward.

"Chairwoman Jiang, thank you, please enjoy your meal as well."

Kaiyin sat stiffly, only sampling the dishes closest to her. Although Jiang Fanbi had mentioned wanting to talk business, that conversation had yet to materialize.

While the Jiang family chatted comfortably, Kaiyin felt fortunate that there were others who remained silent—like Ms. Shu, the man with the gold-rimmed glasses, and… him. Because others were quiet, her own silence didn't seem so out of place.

***

After finishing his cigarette, Song Xiao began to eat, though he didn't have much of an appetite. Later, he set down his wooden chopsticks and used a spoon to taste the old duck soup. After one sip, he frowned, and the spoon fell back against the side of the porcelain bowl with a sharp clatter.

Jiang Fanbi, who had been watching him closely, interpreted this as the soup not being to his taste. Without even calling for Aunt Yun, she stood up personally to give instructions outside.

The Jiang family continued their conversation, seemingly talking about a daughter from a relative’s family. Kaiyin didn't pay much attention, but she did discover that the dish of cold-dressed bitter chrysanthemum was very delicious. Jiang Fanbi had served some to her earlier, but the plate was now far out of her reach.

She wondered: would it be considered rude to reach for a distant dish at a stranger’s dinner table? Ultimately, she didn't move her chopsticks and continued to eat only the food nearby.

Song Xiao tapped his cigarette against the table—a habitual gesture of his. He was about to light it, but out of the corner of his eye, he noticed she had finished the bitter chrysanthemum on her plate and hadn't touched much of anything else. He looked up and tossed the cigarette onto the table, deciding not to smoke it after all.

Wei Yizhi had been eating quietly, but when a relative asked about her college life, she became lively, sharing stories with the family. It was a pleasant scene.

Jiang Fanbi returned and took her seat. But just as she was about to join the conversation about her daughter's university life, she was met with an unexpected sight: Song Xiao had moved the dish of cold-dressed bitter chrysanthemum directly in front of himself and was using the serving chopsticks to place a portion of it onto his plate.

Everyone was surprised. Absolutely everyone.