Chapter 229: Words Hurt, But They Are True

A shadow flickered in Gu Yang's eyes. Just as he was about to speak, Su Yan's soft, sweet voice rang out.

"Miss Liu, hello."

Her attitude was the same as everyone else's, as if she hadn't noticed Liu Yiyi's underlying implication at all.

After greeting her, Su Yan looked toward Gu Yang.

"Brother Gu, could you give us a tour?"

For Su Yan, the most important thing was to investigate everything here as quickly as possible.

As for those petty, low-class schemes, she would simply ignore them.

Gu Yang's smile returned to his face as if it had never left. He signaled for everyone to return to work and then led Su Yan to his office first.

Liu Yiyi was left hanging there, and everyone felt embarrassed on her behalf.

"Liu Yiyi, hasn't your proofreading department been quite busy lately? It's time to head back," Lu Feng's voice reminded her, tinged with a hint of disdain.

They had seen far too many girls like her.

Low-class.

Upon snapping out of it, Liu Yiyi showed no sign of embarrassment; instead, she turned and left with grace and poise.

Watching her retreating figure, Lu Feng shook his head.

"This is my office. Please, make yourselves at home," Gu Yang greeted them, personally pouring hot water for Su Yan, Ma Chulong, and Ma Chulan.

"Brother Gu, can I call you that?" Because of Su Yan, Ma Chulan didn't treat Gu Yang like an outsider and was incredibly friendly.

Gu Yang: "Of course you can."

"This place is completely different from what I imagined. I thought the atmosphere in a publishing house would be extremely serious and tense," Ma Chulan said honestly.

But since they had entered, everyone here had been very amiable. The working environment felt more like a large family—except, of course, for that unpleasant Liu Yiyi.

Gu Yang could roughly guess what kind of publishing house she had imagined.

"It really isn't like that. Everyone is a colleague; there's no need for too many rigid rules and formalities when working together," Gu Yang said. He actually quite liked the current working atmosphere.

Listening to his words, a look of approval appeared in Su Yan's eyes.

"So, this is the office area. Does anyone live here? Besides these colleagues, are there any other people who aren't part of the company?" Ma Chulong knew there were some things Su Yan might find difficult to ask, so he took the initiative to ask instead.

Gu Yang was puzzled by the question, but he answered patiently, "There are resting areas here. Usually, colleagues who work late will stay over. As for the outsiders you mentioned, I'm not quite sure what you mean, but besides the staff you just saw, there are a few others out on field assignments."

Ma Chulong instinctively exchanged a glance with Su Yan.

"Brother Gu, would it be convenient for you to show us around?" Su Yan asked politely.

After all, this was a place of work.

Gu Yang didn't hesitate for a second. "No problem."

"It won't cause you any trouble, will it?" Su Yan didn't want to owe him too many favors.

Gu Yang teased, "The publishing house doesn't have many confidential areas, except for the accounting office. If you wanted to see the ledgers, I'm afraid even I would need to ask for permission."

Even Su Yan couldn't help but smile at his words.

Seeing her eyes curve into crescents, Gu Yang found it hard to look away. He struggled to suppress the surging emotions within him.

"Let's go. I'll take you for a walk."

The publishing house was neither large nor small; it took more than half an hour for the four of them to finish the tour.

Su Yan not only gained an understanding of Gu Yang's work but also learned how the entire publishing house operated.

Gu Yang introduced everything seriously, and she listened just as intently.

In the end, she could confirm that, at least for now, nothing seemed wrong here.

"Brother Gu, has the publishing house always been here? Or did you move here recently?"

Gu Yang gave a definitive answer, "It has been here since I started working."

The doubt in Su Yan's heart deepened.

After the tour, Gu Yang intended to drive them back to the hotel, but Su Yan declined.

"Brother Gu, you've already lost a day of work because of us. The hotel isn't far from here; we can make our own way back."

"Girl, saying that will only make Gu Yang sad. He pushed aside all his work today just so he could accompany you," Lu Feng's voice suddenly rang out from outside the window.

If he didn't say these words on Gu Yang's behalf, Gu Yang certainly wouldn't.

Su Yan froze for a moment; she truly hadn't realized that.

Gu Yang said helplessly, "Work hasn't been very busy lately."

Lu Feng let out an exaggerated "tsk-tsk," exposing his lie.

Su Yan understood everything now. "Then please drive us back. It just so happens that I have some things I want to say to you."

Gu Yang's heart tightened; he could roughly guess what she wanted to say.

But avoiding it wasn't a solution; it was better to face it directly and resolve the issue.

"Alright."

The atmosphere on the road was somewhat heavy. Even Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan sensed something was up and didn't say another word.

The drive from the publishing house to the hotel took only five minutes.

Upon arrival, the siblings bid Gu Yang farewell and returned to their room.

Gu Yang followed Su Yan to her side, having prepared himself mentally.

With only the two of them in the room, Gu Yang was the one to speak first.

"Yan Yan, what do you want to say to me?"

For the first time, Su Yan hesitated before him, but the hesitation lasted only a few seconds.

"Brother Gu, I hope you can reconsider our relationship."

Gu Yang let out a long, low sigh.

As expected.

"Yan Yan, what happened during the time I was away in the capital?"

Even if they were to part ways, he needed a reason.

Although she had felt this way at the beginning, he could clearly feel her softening after their subsequent interactions. The fact that she was bringing up the past now was naturally due to their separation over these past few months.

"Some things did happen, but it has nothing to do with me making this decision. I want to separate not because you are a bad person, but because we are not suitable for each other." Su Yan would not lie about such matters; she said exactly what she thought.

After experiencing so much, she felt more and more that since she had no way to choose to erase her own abilities, she should move forward relentlessly. Emotions would only become a burden to her.

Furthermore, Gu Yang did not show the agitated emotions or exaggerated reactions she had imagined, which was already a decent outcome.

"When you say 'not suitable,' what aspect do you mean? I'm not going to pester you, I just want to understand clearly. I hope you can give me a definitive answer, Yan Yan," Gu Yang's voice was heavy, as he was trying his best to suppress his emotions.

For a moment, Su Yan actually didn't know how to put it.

Gu Yang continued to ask, "Status? Age? Or something else?"

Su Yan took a deep breath, and the gaze she turned toward him was filled with determination.

"It's not those external factors that I care about. What I mean by 'not suitable' is that I don't feel love for you. I feel that emotions are a burden to me."

Though the words were hurtful, they were the truth, and they would allow him to finally give up hope.

(End of Chapter)