I'm Interested In Your Friend - Chapter 30
30
Yu Lili was dumbfounded. She hid her face behind the blanket and hesitated for a moment before saying, “N-no, that’s not good, is it?”
After refusing, she added guiltily, “Do you have anywhere else to sleep?”
“No,” Tan Suran lowered her eyes and let out a soft sigh, her voice tinged with an indescribable melancholy. “I have a meeting early tomorrow morning.”
“Ah?”
“It’s fine. I’ll just sit on the sofa for a while. I’m used to staying up late.”
Yu Lili sat silently on the bed, suddenly feeling like a terrible person.
She pursed her lips and looked up.
Tan Suran also raised her head, faint traces of exhaustion visible under her eyes.
With a slight curve of her lips, Tan Suran said, “Go to sleep.”
Yu Lili flopped onto the bed.
She replayed Tan Suran’s expression in her mind—though it had seemed completely blank, Yu Lili inexplicably sensed a hint of accusation directed at her.
She pulled the blanket over her face.
Half a minute later, her muffled voice came through the covers: “Tan Suran, come lie down here.”
“No need.”
“Come here.” Yu Lili threw off the blanket and patted the space beside her.
Tan Suran’s fingers paused over her email. Then she raised an eyebrow and said, “Fine.”
As if she had no choice.
Truthfully, the bed in this high-end hospital room was quite large—plenty of space for two people.
Yu Lili closed her eyes, breathing in the familiar scent of bitter lemon beside her.
For some reason, she couldn’t fall asleep.
Her heartbeat wasn’t slowing down into a sleepy rhythm either.
Instead, it was getting faster and faster.
“Still awake?” Tan Suran’s low, husky voice broke the silence.
“Not used to it?”
Yu Lili let out a vague hum.
Tan Suran chuckled softly. “Haven’t we slept together several times already?”
Was it her imagination, or had she just been teased?
Yu Lili’s face burned for a while.
Not wanting to admit defeat, she blurted out recklessly, “Too bad we haven’t really slept together.”
Tan Suran didn’t miss a beat. “How do you want to really sleep, then?”
The conversation was veering into dangerous territory.
Yu Lili covered her face. “How can you be like this…”
“Like what?”
“All… pervy.”
“Oh? Weren’t we just discussing sleeping positions—on your back, on your side, or upside down?”
“……”
Alright, fine.
She’d lost.
Yu Lili burrowed under the covers for a while before speaking again. “Have you been really tired lately?”
“I saw your news on TV.”
After a long pause, Tan Suran replied softly, “Mm.”
“If there’s anything, you don’t have to keep it to yourself. You can tell me.”
“Mm.”
“Don’t want to talk about it?”
Tan Suran was silent for a long time before saying, “Mm.”
Yu Lili decided to tempt her. “I can give you a little reward.”
Tan Suran let out a low laugh. “Let’s hear it.”
“Tell me first, and I’ll tell you afterward. I promise it’ll be a pleasant surprise.”
Tan Suran sighed. “Core company data was leaked. There’s a huge crisis risk now. If someone with ill intentions copies and spreads it, the entire project could go up in smoke at any moment.”
As she spoke, Tan Suran shifted onto her side, facing Yu Lili directly.
“To be honest, this project is the result of a lot of people’s hard work. Many of them left research institutes to join me in this. I’m not just responsible for the project—I’m responsible for them too.”
“Huh?”
“What?”
Yu Lili said, “I didn’t expect you to think that way.”
“How should I think, then?”
Yu Lili tucked one arm behind her head. “Aren’t capitalists supposed to not care about the lives of their workers?”
“Is that the impression I give you?”
“Not exactly. It’s just that your personality is the cold, aloof type, right?”
Tan Suran glanced at her. “This company is something I built from scratch.”
Yu Lili didn’t believe it. “Without your parents’ help?”
“They lent me 100,000—and made me sign an IOU. At my lowest point, I had only 100 yuan left in my bank account. I couldn’t even afford to pay my employees’ salaries the next month.”
Yu Lili was moved. She never imagined that Tan Suran, the “golden child” of their circle, had struggled so much in the beginning.
“Because of my family background, I never lacked money growing up. So when I started this company, it wasn’t about making money—it was about doing something meaningful.”
Yu Lili didn’t know how to respond. “Then why didn’t you just work at your dad’s company?”
“Different paths.” Tan Suran said, “You have to find something you’re passionate about. Otherwise, you’ll never stop searching.”
Yu Lili yawned. “That sounds way too profound.”
“Aren’t you the same? Chasing your dreams.”
Yu Lili drowsily thought that she was indeed like that. “Yeah, I guess… Let’s sleep.”
Tan Suran didn’t reply.
The mattress dipped slightly.
A rustling sound followed.
Tan Suran propped herself up on one arm, leaning over Yu Lili.
Her voice was so close it felt like a whisper in her ear: “Asleep?”
Yu Lili, who was very much awake, fluttered her lashes. “What’s up?”
Soft strands of hair brushed against her cheek.
Tan Suran’s gaze wandered over her freely, her voice low and husky as she said, “Little liar, where’s the reward you promised?”
Yu Lili bit her lip.
The temperature in the enclosed space seemed to rise bit by bit.
Her heartbeat grew louder and louder.
Yu Lili held out a hand. “Here.”
Tan Suran looked at it. “What’s this?”
“I’m very generous. You can choose: fifty zero-yuan bills or a hundred zero-yuan bills. Which one do you want?”
“……”
Tan Suran sounded sleepy now too. “I’ll stop teasing you. Go to sleep.”
Yu Lili didn’t know when she’d fallen asleep.
When she woke up, the room was bright with daylight.
The space beside her was neatly made, empty.
She sat up halfway and looked around.
Tan Suran was nowhere to be seen.
Remembering her mention of a meeting last night, Yu Lili understood.
After getting out of bed, she noticed a pink thermal lunchbox on the table.
She unscrewed the lid.
Inside was steaming hot congee.
After finishing the sweet porridge, Yu Lili noticed a small card next to the lunchbox.
She blinked and picked it up.
Tan Suran’s handwriting was elegant and neat, carefully listing all the precautions the nurse had advised the night before.
As for how she knew it was Tan Suran’s writing…
The last line read:
[Follow the doctor’s orders, little liar.]
…
“What are you grinning about?” Du Tanyu snapped her fingers in front of Yu Lili’s face.
The moment she arrived, she’d seen Yu Lili staring at a small card with a silly smile.
Leaning in for a closer look:
“1. Maintain a light diet. Avoid raw, cold, or spicy foods…”
What was this?
Yu Lili, still gazing at the card, absentmindedly said to Du Tanyu, “I was hospitalized last night.”
Du Tanyu: “Huh?”
“Acute gastroenteritis.”
Du Tanyu: “Are you okay? What happened?”
“So I’ve made a decision.”
Faced with Yu Lili’s non sequitur, Du Tanyu could only shrug. “Go on.”
Yu Lili clenched her fist, eyes shining with determination. “The next time we meet—”
“I’m going to tell Tan Suran.”
“That I’m Yu Lili.”