CHAPTER 465: 225. PROPOSAL?_4

With these thoughts, Xiao Ran acted accordingly. Her hair slipped through her fingers, and her heart felt softly tickled by a feather.

Then, holding her hand, he gazed at her warmly and affectionately, "I’ll hold onto you."

The warm touch spread to her palm, not unfamiliar, but not entirely familiar either.

When she first heard about the surprise, Xu Moyi was full of anticipation. After all, young girls rarely resist such gestures.

But now, she felt a tiny bit uneasy.

Her grip on the phone tightened as she suppressed the strange emotion from her heart, deliberately making a warning face, "I can close my eyes, but you better not trick me!"

The elevator doors opened, and Xiao Ran led Xu Moyi inside, his gentle features smiling warmly, "Don’t worry, I won’t let you stumble or get hurt."

There were other people in the elevator, making it a bit crowded. Xu Moyi was sheltered in a corner by Xiao Ran, a gesture of invisible protection.

It made her feel safe, even with her eyes closed.

After exiting the elevator, Xu Moyi took each step carefully, almost shuffling forward.

Xiao Ran didn’t rush her, patiently matching her pace, and said with a smile, "Don’t be afraid, there’s nothing on the ground to trip over."

"I know, but walking with my eyes closed feels really strange, like walking on a tightrope bridge."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran thought for a moment, released her hand, and wrapped his arm around her slender waist, half-holding her, "How about this? Is it much better?"

The man’s sudden gesture made Xu Moyi’s nerves tense instantly.

However, she masked her breathlessness and body stiffness well so that others wouldn’t notice a thing.

There were stairs, and even though Xiao Ran carefully reminded her, she still missed a step, and he almost half-carried her to sit on a chair.

When one’s vision is blocked, their hearing becomes more acute. She could seemingly hear the surrounding whispers and the low instructions from the man beside her.

About half a minute later, she heard the man’s voice, "Mo Yi, you can open your eyes now."

Indeed, ninety-nine percent of the time, a woman’s intuition is accurate.

Today, Xiao Ran was wearing a white shirt, with two buttons undone at the collar, surrounded by scattered rose petals and floating pink balloons.

His face was as striking as jade, and his eyes shone brightly.

He looked like the prince from the cartoons she watched as a child, finally able to kiss the sleeping princess after defeating the evil monsters.

But why would it be in such a setting?

There was once a video by a media outlet featuring protagonists who backed out before weddings, both men and women.

Why did they have a change of heart?

Over half gave the same answer: They weren’t that in love, but the proposal was in a bustling place, under the expectant gazes of everyone, and they couldn’t back out, thus were forced to agree.

This was the most expensive restaurant in Qing City, where guests were few but wealthy.

If she didn’t agree, it would be the second time she harshly slapped Xiao Ran in the face...

In high society circles, a pebble’s ripple could create waves that disrupt peace, and both the Xiao Family and Xu Family would become topics of gossip.

Xiao Ran took out a small black velvet box from his pocket, opened it, and slowly walked up to her, kneeling on one knee.

"Mo Yi, I also detest the idea of marriage being tied to family interests. I want a marriage born from freedom, and to be with the one I love. So, the day I returned to China, I intended to confront my father."

Recalling something, the curve of his lips became more pronounced, "But I didn’t expect to be hit by your car and end up in the hospital for over half a month, unable to say anything."

When he mentioned this, the surrounding guests burst into laughter, some whistling.

Once the restaurant quieted down again, he continued, "Some say the feeling of being moved arrives unnoticed, and the moment you wanted to leave me and run, I believed that saying."

The laughter among the guests grew louder, mingled with applause and whistling.

It’s hard to imagine this is a proposal.

Xu Moyi held her forehead, explaining, "I’ve said it 800 times, I was just getting my phone to call an ambulance, not planning to run away."

"Mm, you didn’t plan to run away," Xiao Ran held one of her hands, his thumb gently stroking her delicate skin, and the amusement in his brows became more charming, "you just saw no one around, so you wanted to leave me on the road."

Xu Moyi, "..."

You could say it pierced her heart.

In his gentle gaze was a bewitchment Xu Moyi had never seen before.

It shifted from storytelling to the deep emotion a proposal should have, "Like me, you hate marriages bound by interests. So, Mo Yi, would you like to use marriage to escape those interests with me?"

This sentence, put more plainly, would be: Mo Yi, will you marry me?

...

Everyone’s attention was on the pair, so when Mu Jin Huan and Nan Wan left after settling the bill, almost no one noticed.

Before the elevator doors closed, Nan Wan vaguely heard two words, "Sure."

Light as a feather.

Once outside the restaurant, the woman by his side suddenly quickened her pace, stopping in front of Mu Jin Huan and looking at him with sparkling eyes.

In her eyes was something Mu Jin Huan couldn’t understand.

"What’s wrong?"

"Nothing," Nan Wan leaned into the man’s embrace, raising her arms to hug him, "Just suddenly feel that mature older men are quite nice."

She finally realized why God gave her so much misfortune and loneliness.

Because God wanted to balance it out by giving her the best, so she had to endure more before meeting him.

Upon hearing this, Mu Jin Huan’s deep eyes were filled with a gentle smile, as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

Half-closing his eyes, he slowly savored the words, "Old?"

"So what if you’re old, I’m not exactly young either," Nan Wan tilted her head up to look at him, her eyes filling with a gentle, beautiful smile, "We match well."

She watched as the man raised and then smoothed his brow before slightly rising on tiptoes to kiss him with a smile.

Such an initiative from her couldn’t even fill five fingers on a hand, but Mu Jin Huan paused only a moment before pulling her to the side to avoid the prying eyes hoping to witness a spectacle.

He shielded her entirely with his body, then lowered his head, taking the initiative in turn.

Together through thick and thin.

————

On a bench next to the office, a person sat, head slightly bowed, seemingly waiting for something.

Nan Wan’s steps paused mid-way, unconsciously tightening her grip on the pen in her hand.

So, she hadn’t seen wrong yesterday.