Free Web NovelChapter 233: Chapter 233: Caught You
Su Li stared at the words "Happy Birthday, Su Li" for a long time without moving.
"Su Li, is today your birthday? Why didn’t you tell us?"
Chang E asked, finally realizing.
Su Li shook her head. "I forgot myself, so how could I have told you?"
Celebrating a birthday was a distant concept to her; she had never once celebrated hers growing up.
In the Su Family, the only person who ever got to celebrate their birthday was Su Dan. On that day, Miao Fenghua would wake up early to cook him noodles and boil him eggs.
When she was little, Su Li envied Su Dan the most.
She had cried and demanded a birthday celebration too, but all she got in return was a beating from Miao Fenghua.
As for Father Su, he was decent enough to the two sisters, but he simply wasn’t that attentive. In time, he and their mother forgot Su Xing’s and Su Li’s birthdays entirely. For Su Li, her birthday was nothing more than the date of birth recorded on the household register. freёweɓnovel.com
Later on, it became just a string of numbers on her ID card.
Su Li had never celebrated a birthday, so she’d never had the chance to get used to it.
This birthday wish, this gift, was the first she had ever heard or received in two lifetimes.
The complex emotions swirling in Su Li’s heart were beyond words.
"To forget your own birthday... Su Li, you’re really something else..." Chang E sighed, then cupped her face and gazed dreamily at the wooden plaque.
"This is so touching. Su Li, hurry and see what’s in the boxes."
Su Li nodded and opened a box again to look inside. Her face immediately lit up with a delightful surprise—it was a box full of classic literature from foreign countries.
There were both original-language versions and translated editions.
"Oh my god." Su Li, in disbelief, went to check the other boxes, the surprise on her face growing wider and wider.
Six boxes! All six of them were full of books!
Chang E, who was right behind Su Li, was already stunned.
"Whoa... What a grand gesture! This birthday gift is just incredible! Who could have sent this..."
As she spoke, her eyes lit up. "Su Li, could it be Qu An? It has to be him, right? This is so generous..."
Su Li shook her head, cutting her off. "It’s not him."
Chang E froze for a second. "Not Qu An? Then who is it?"
Su Li’s tone was firm. "It’s definitely not Qu An."
Chang E studied Su Li’s expression. "Su Li, do you know who sent it?"
Su Li just smiled without a word.
Of course, she knew.
There was only one person in this world who would do something like this.
Only Wu Sheng.
"Tell me! Su Li, hurry and tell me who it is!" Chang E’s eyes flashed as she pounced on Su Li and clung to her. "Quick, tell me, tell me!"
Su Li kept her lips sealed and shook her head.
"AHHHH! Su Li, you have to tell me! You can’t be all secretive! We’re best friends, you’d better fess up right now! Who is it?"
Chang E shrieked, her face flushed red, even more excited than Su Li herself.
"Take a guess?" Su Li said, lovingly stroking the six boxes.
"Why didn’t I get a better look at the delivery guy just now? Was it him? He was wearing a hat and his head was down, so I didn’t see him clearly, but I remember he was very tall... Could he still be somewhere nearby?"
Chang E twisted her head around, looking in all directions.
Su Li heard her and looked at Chang E without refuting her.
She took the wooden plaques back and examined them one by one.
Although the characters were written in a chubby, adorable script, completely unlike his usual wild, flamboyant scrawl, Su Li could still see a sense of familiarity.
How could she not be familiar with it? This kind of wooden plaque, this kind of surprise, this kind of handwriting—only Wu Sheng would do this, only Wu Sheng would bring this to her.
"Su Li, I’m so excited, so moved, so happy! Can I touch one again?"
Chang E crouched next to Su Li to look at it with her.
Su Li chuckled and handed one to her.
After stroking it contentedly, Chang E asked Su Li, "Su Li, what are you going to do with all these books? Should we register and organize them to put out in the bookstore?"
Su Li shook her head. "No."
She took the plaque back from Chang E’s hand, placed them all inside a box, and pushed the boxes into a corner.
"Su Li, let’s go eat together. I’ll treat you to something nice to celebrate your birthday." Chang E patted her chest. "Big Sis has money now."
She paused, then added, "Well, I’ll have money after you pay me for my part-time work."
Su Li laughed. "Thank you, but that’s alright."
Chang E blinked.
Su Li patted her head. "I have plans."
"Lock up in a bit. Don’t touch the six boxes of books." Su Li went upstairs, grabbed her bag, and came back down.
Chang E grabbed Su Li and looked around. "Su Li, are you going to find the person who sent you the gift? Where?"
Su Li also scanned the area outside. "I don’t know where he is either."
"You don’t know? No way. How are you going to find him if you don’t know?" Chang E said anxiously.
"I’ll just have to try my luck." Su Li shrugged. "I’m off."
Watching Su Li’s retreating back, Chang E offered her honest assessment. "She’s crazy..."
Su Li wasn’t crazy. She was telling the truth.
Where was Wu Sheng? She both knew and didn’t know.
He was definitely within a two-hundred-meter radius. He was probably even watching her reaction to the gift, maybe even snickering smugly to himself.
No... not ’maybe.’ He was definitely doing that.
Su Li was certain of this, but she didn’t know his exact location within that two-hundred-meter radius.
Nor was she confident she could find Wu Sheng.
That elusive Wu Sheng... if he didn’t want to be found, no one could find him.
Because Su Li had previously told him not to look for her for the time being, he had truly kept his distance, even delivering her gift like this.
Su Li walked out of the bookstore and scanned her surroundings. As expected, she saw nothing.
She raised her head to the sky, took a deep breath, and a glint of slyness flashed in her eyes.
’Let’s just test if my theory is right...’
Su Li muttered to herself and started walking home, just like any other day.
After walking at a leisurely pace for a while, Su Li began to fix her hair, and then...
"Ouch!" Not paying attention to the steps for a moment, Su Li missed her footing.
"Hiss..." Barely catching herself, Su Li seemed to have twisted her ankle. She let out a sharp breath and crouched down.
Less than a second after crouching, Su Li suddenly whipped her head around.
Her eyes met Wu Sheng’s, who was standing five or six steps behind her.
The anxious look on Wu Sheng’s face froze. He shifted his feet, about to dart away.
"Come back. I’ve caught you." Su Li straightened up and lifted her chin. "Don’t you dare run."
Looking at her now, there wasn’t the slightest hint that she had twisted her ankle.
Wu Sheng: "..."
Su Li walked over and stood in front of Wu Sheng. "I already saw you, what are you running for?"
Wu Sheng looked at Su Li and managed to get a few words out. "Su Li, you’ve gotten sneaky."
’She actually played a trick on me!’
He fought back the strong urge to ruffle Su Li’s hair. "Don’t play jokes like that again."
She had given him a real scare just now. He’d rushed toward her without a second thought.
Su Li looked at Wu Sheng. "Fess up. How long have you been following me?"
"Not long. Just since you left the store."
Wu Sheng grinned. "And didn’t you catch me anyway?"
Su Li said nothing. She wasn’t asking about today. She was asking about all the times before.
Wu Sheng smiled. He knew she wasn’t asking about today, but about before.
’How long have I been following her? Every day?’
’No, I missed a couple of days here and there, so it wasn’t quite every day.’
’I just wanted to take the chance to see her a few more times while I was still in the Imperial City.’
’But how could I possibly confess something like that to Su Li? It would totally ruin my cool image!’
Su Li looked at Wu Sheng’s smiling face, suppressed the stinging feeling in her nose, and said in a low voice, "Are you an idiot?"
’What a complete idiot!’
’She told him not to come looking for her for a while, and he really didn’t show himself. Instead, he secretly sent her gifts and watched her from afar...’
’How did I never realize he was this honest, this foolish? Wasn’t he supposed to be the cleverest one?’
