I Want a Lifetime with You novel Chapter 201

“Lin?” George nodded. “He was my student, but he had left France some time ago. Ms. Shi, do you know him?” George’s gaze had changed, especially when Shi Nuan nodded in reply. “Great! I haven’t met Lin in a while. I wonder how he is right now.”

“He’s doing well!” Shi Nuan smiled. “Mr. George, your last trip to China must’ve been a while ago. Lin Yu is working in Shengyuan Group now. He’s my superior,” Shi Nuan told him. “Mr. Lin was supposed to be here today, but he had been feeling unwell recently, so he couldn’t make it.”

“That doesn’t matter. We can meet another day.”

When they were chatting, Zhou Zheng had already driven the car to the neighborhood. As they needed a pass to enter, Shi Nuan took out the pass she had prepared earlier and handed it to the security. “Number 1808.”

“Oh, is this Mr. Fu? Mr. Fu hasn’t been here in ages.” The security knew Fu Chengyan well. To be exact, those who lived in this neighborhood had to be verified before they could move in.

After the security let them in, Shi Nuan handed the pass to George. “This is one of my husband’s villa, but no one lives here. Mr. George, you can stay here without any worries. I’ve already prepared the toiletries.”

They out of the car as Zhou Zheng helped them bring in the luggage like the assistant he was. Shi Nuan fell behind as she was chatting to George about Lin Yu. It seemed like George liked Lin Yu a lot, because the man was delighted to talk about him.

Shi Nuan unlocked the door, and they went in. Zhou Zheng brought George, Dani, and the assistant to their upstairs while Shi Nuan went to the kitchen to check it out. Luckily, Shi Nuan had already sent someone to clean the place up and restock the refrigerator with fresh ingredients last night.

“Hey, who’s this?”

Shi Nuan heard a familiar voice and turned to see Su Shaoqing leaning against the doorframe. The man’s arms were folded across his chest as he shot a smile at her.

Su Shaoqing was surprised to see Shi Nuan here, and vice versa. “Mr. Su?”

The man arched his brows. “Yes. Why are you here?” Su Shaoqing walked over to Shi Nuan and studied the place. “I was wondering why someone suddenly showed up at this villa after it had been left empty for two years. I thought Chengyan has finally see the light. Where is he?”

“He isn’t here. He went to see Li Heng.” Shi Nuan gazed at Su Shaoqing. “Why are you here?”

“Here, see that?” Su Shaoqing brought Shi Nuan to the villa’s entrance and pointed at a villa not far away. “That’s me, number 1806. Back then, when Li Heng finished developing this area, he gave us one villa each. That’s mine, and Jingxiu’s villa is right beside mine. But Jingxiu and Chengyan never stayed here. Li Heng rarely comes by too.”

Realization dawned upon Shi Nuan. “So you don’t stay with your family?”

Su Shaoqing replied with a smile, “What’s so strange about that? Chengyan doesn’t stay with his family, too.” The man wandered around the living room. “What’s going on? Are you planning on moving in today? That will be awesome! We can be neighbors from now on, and I can come for dinner sometimes!” Su Shaoqing glanced around. He had his own agenda. “The furniture has been here for two years, but still seems new because nobody ever used it. You don’t have to buy new ones.”

“Mr. Su, I think you must’ve misunderstood,” Shi Nuan couldn’t help but cut Su Shaoqing off. “We are not planning on moving in.”

“You’re not planning to move in? Then why are you here today?”

Shi Nuan pointed upstairs. “Yan hired a lead architect from overseas, and he has to stay in Jiang City for at least one year. I thought it would be inappropriate to let him stay in a hotel long-term, so I took it upon myself to find him a place. Yan told me this villa was unused, and it would be wasteful to keep it empty, so we decided to make good use of it.”

“Well, I highly doubt Chengyan willingly offered up the villa. You were the one who suggested it, right?” Su Shaoqing shook his head and gave a thumbs up. “You can use the place and save the hotel expenses.”

Shi Nuan narrowed her eyes but said nothing.

“I think Chengyan is lucky to have married you,” Su Shaoqing reached out to pat the sofa. “You said the lead architect is here, right? Where is he?”

“Zhou Zheng is with him upstairs. I’m just checking if there’s anything missing downstairs.” Shi Nuan glanced around. “Would you like some tea?”

“You have tea?” Su Shaoqing raised his brows. “You just moved in, so I assumed the house would be empty.”

“Well, no. I had asked someone to prepare the essentials earlier. Yan said Mr. George likes Chinese culture and loves Chinese tea, too.” Shi Nuan went to the kitchen to get the tea set.Su Shaoqing stood up and followed her. “Don’t bother. I’m just here to check out what’s going on as the villa had been empty for some time.” Su Shaoqing sighed. “That’s all. I just got back from work and need some rest.”

“You took the night shift last night? But you’re only back now?”

“Yes, I had a surgery to perform this morning, it was an emergency operation. I need to go now. I’ll visit you and Chengyan when I’m free. I’ll get Li Heng and the others to come so we can gather!”

“Sure!”

Shi Nuan walked Su Shaoqing to the door and watched as the man went into his own villa. She went to the kitchen and picked out a few pretty teacups to prepare tea.

Upstairs, Zhou Zheng showing George around. Both George and Dani were picky about the lighting and design, so it took some time for them to discuss before choosing their rooms. The assistant picked a room beside George’s for convenience sale, as he had to take care of him daily.

After they had settled down and tidied their rooms, everyone went downstairs. Shi Nuan had just finished preparing the tea. “Mr. George, Ms. Dani, you must be tired. Come, have some tea.”

Shi Nuan gestured for them take a seat and gave served them tea.

George was a foreigner, but he had been intrigued by Chinese culture since he was a child, and his love for Chinese culture grew after Lin Yu became his student, as he admired Lin Yu’s wisdom and intelligence. Lin Yu was the one who taught him everything about Chinese food.

George was both Lin Yu’s teacher and friend. They were close to each other.

The man took a sip of the tea, and his eyes immediately sparkled with delight. “Ms. Shi, I didn’t know you could prepare tea so well.”

“Mr. George, you flatter me. I’m just an amateur. I have a friend who’s better than me,” Shi Nuan smiled. “It’s almost time. Shall we make move? Mr. George, you have been to Jiang City, right? Then you must’ve seen all that Jiang City has to offer.”

“Because of work, I haven’t had the chance to enjoy the scenery.”

“Since you’ll be here for some time, you can take your time to visit the city. Let’s go enjoy some local delicacies for today.”

Shi Nuan shot a look at Zhou Zheng after saying that. George was excited to explore, but Dani hadn’t gotten used to the place yet, so she chose to rest at home. To show her concern to Dani, Shi Nuan told Zhou Zheng to hire a Western chef to accommodate George and his team’s palates.

Shi Nuan brought George to lunch before bringing him to Ruyi Tea House.

At the entrance, George was already full of praises. Both Shi Nuan and Su Yian were in charge of building and designing Ruyi Tea House back then, so everything was done according to their tastes.

They loved having a quiet environment and were inspired by traditional Chinese decor. The overall ambience was comfortable and relaxing.

George marveled over the design and was full of compliments. “The Chinese culture is profound.” The man spoke in Chinese when he stressed the word “profound”. Although his pronunciation seemed strange and funny, he showed his sincerity well.

Shi Nuan nodded and introduced the place to him. “Mr. George, you flatter us. My friend is in here, so you can learn from her. By the way, she majored in French.”

“Great!” George nodded. “Ms. Shi, you and your friend are capable women.”

When they were talking, Su Yian had already come out of the room. She was wearing linen clothes, which seemed casual but polite at the same time.

The teahouse was well heated, so there was no need for thick clothes. Su Yian’s long hair was tied up in a simple ponytail.

Su Yian had a gentle smile on her face. “Nuan, you’re here.”

“Yes, I told you I’m bringing a guest here.” Shi Nuan introduced George to her, “Mr. George, this is my friend, Su Yian. You can call her Ann.”

“Hello, Mr. George.” Su Yian smiled and stretched her hand out in a friendly manner. George shook her hand politely. “Hello, Ann. I’m George!”

“Please, do come in!”

Su Yian told the servers to prepare a tea set before leading Shi Nuan and George into a room. “I’ve already prepared everything. Mr. George, is there anything you wish to drink in particular?”

“Anything would do.”

Su Yian glanced at Shi Nuan, who nodded. “You can decide.” Suddenly, her phone rang. Shi Nuan apologized and went to the door to answer the call. “Hello, Mr. Lin?”

“You’re with George today?” Lin Yu asked.Shi Nuan nodded and told him, “Yes, it’s the weekend, so I’m bringing Mr. George around. What’s wrong?”

“Where are you? I’ll come right now.” Shi Nuan told Lin Yu the address. She turned to see George and Su Yian chatting delightedly in French.

When the server arrived, Shi Nuan told him to put the tea set down. Then, she started boiling water quietly. George would include her in their conversation occasionally, and it was a harmonious gathering.

“Ann, have you been to France?”

“Yes, I have. But it was for a trip,” Su Yian answered with a smile. Shi Nuan handed her a cup of tea, and she lightly swirled it. Just then, someone knocked on the door, so Shi Nuan stood up to open it. A man stood at the door with his coat in his hand. He seemed to have rushed here, but he still maintained his poise. “Sorry, I’m late.”