The Creator's Grace (GL) - Chapter 10

Ran Jin’s office was on the 18th floor of the U.P. Building.

Chi Yu’s sudden appearance caught everyone in the group off guard.

Some of the middle and senior management and long-term employees recognized her immediately and put down their work to greet her. The newcomers were a bit confused, not knowing who this person was and why there was such a commotion.

Manager Xu from the Planning Department invited Chi Yu to the reception room, saying, “President Ran just went out on business, I’ll contact her right away.”

Chi Yu smiled faintly at Manager Xu, “I’ll wait for Sister Ran in her office.”

As the second young lady of the Chi family, not to mention the former chairman, even the current Ran Jin held her in the palm of her hand. This entire U.P. Building was still closely linked to the surname “Chi” for the time being. If the second young lady wanted to go somewhere, there was no way Manager Xu could refuse.

Manager Xu led her to Ran Jin’s office and personally brought her a cup of hot tea.

As soon as she came out, she was pulled aside by Xiao Yang from the same department.

“Manager Xu, Manager Xu, who was that person? How did you let her into President Ran’s office?”

Manager Xu gently tapped Xiao Yang’s forehead with the folder she had just picked up, pulled her to a deserted corner, and whispered, “That’s President Chi’s younger sister who’s been studying overseas.”

“Ah? That’s her?”

Even the new employees of the Chi Corporation who hadn’t met Chi Yu in person had heard that the chairman had a younger sister whom she cherished like the apple of her eye.

Everyone had only heard about the younger sister but never seen her. Now that President Chi had an accident and there were so many rumors, the younger sister had come directly. No one knew what would happen. Xiao Yang’s mind was already filled with images of a bloody storm.

Chi Yu walked into Ran Jin’s office. It faced south, and standing in front of the bright and quiet floor-to-ceiling window, she could see the entire city’s highway network.

Besides work documents and a computer, there was a photo frame on Ran Jin’s desk.

The frame held a picture of a snow-capped mountain. The mountain peaks were layered upon each other, with the base of the mountain extending outwards, forming a deep embrace. Within this embrace lay a lake as blue as a sapphire.

Chi Yu picked up the photo frame, feeling that this scenery looked somewhat familiar, but she couldn’t recall where she had seen it. Perhaps it was in a documentary.

She put down the photo frame, sat down in the chair, and turned on Ran Jin’s personal computer.

Unsurprisingly, it required a password.

Chi Yu quickly entered her sister’s birthday, incorrect.

She tried Ran Jin’s birthday again, also wrong.

Her fingertips hovered over the keyboard. After thinking for a moment, she entered the date Ran Jin came to the Chi family, followed by all the important dates she could think of related to Ran Jin and her sister.

All incorrect.

Her purpose for this trip was specifically to see what she could dig out from Ran Jin’s computer.

Qi Tong was right. The last call her sister made before passing away, clinging to her final breath, wasn’t to her, but to Ran Jin. It was possible that her sister had a very deep affection for Ran Jin, something Chi Yu had witnessed over the years and wasn’t surprised by.

But what about Ran Jin?

When Chi Yu thought of Ran Jin, she pictured her perpetually unsmiling face and a pair of eyes as still and empty as a deserted mountain.

Chi Yu had always felt that although Ran Jin was gentle and accommodating to her family, it was always difficult to truly understand her inner thoughts.

Her sister’s incident had made Ran Jin’s attitude even more unpredictable.

Perhaps the personal computer would hold some traces of her emotions.

Chi Yu had come to Ran Jin’s office while she was away, hoping to try her luck, but unfortunately, she couldn’t unlock the computer.

Chi Yu leaned heavily back in her chair, feeling somewhat agitated.

Passwords often hold a certain symbolic meaning for most people, usually dates that they don’t need to think about and can remember instinctively.

If the password was indeed her sister’s birthday, it would indicate that Ran Jin still had some feelings for her sister.

But she had tried all the dates related to her sister and still couldn’t unlock Ran Jin’s computer.

Therefore, Ran Jin’s password probably had nothing to do with her sister.

Thinking of the police officer surnamed Lu, Chi Yu’s expression darkened again.

Without waiting for Ran Jin to return, Chi Yu left her office.

Manager Xu came up and said, “President Ran said she won’t be back for a while, and asked you to wait a little longer.”

Chi Yu said, “I have other things to attend to, I’ll leave first.”

“Oh, oh, then you…”

Before she could finish saying “take care,” Chi Yu had already pushed open the door and left the office area.

Chi Yu felt a little dizzy as she went downstairs, unsure if it was because her fever hadn’t completely subsided or if her low bl00d sugar had acted up again.

The bottom three floors of the building were a shopping mall. She planned to go to the convenience store to buy some chocolate.

On her way to the convenience store, she passed a coffee shop.

Chi Yu walked past the coffee shop and then turned back, looking inside through the glass window. She was certain that the person sitting in the coffee shop was Ran Jin.

Ran Jin was wearing a formal black business suit, her face carrying its usual coldness. Her long, straight black hair was draped over her shoulders, making her seem unapproachable.

And the person sitting opposite her, Chi Yu recognized as Ran Jin’s mother, He Zhi.

Chi Yu had only met He Zhi twice, once in the U.P. Building and once at the Chi family home. Both times, He Zhi had come to find Ran Jin on her own initiative, and Ran Jin had ignored her, leaving her hanging around for over an hour. Only when she realized she wouldn’t see her daughter did she leave.

Speaking of which, Chi Yu wasn’t a very observant person when it came to other people’s appearances, especially since she had only glanced at He Zhi a few times during their two encounters.

But He Zhi had left quite a deep impression on her.

Apart from being Ran Jin’s estranged mother, there was also her strange way of dressing.

He Zhi liked to wear very white and heavy foundation, making her face look pale and almost lifeless.

Sunglasses were a standard accessory; Chi Yu had never seen her take them off, whether indoors or outdoors.

No matter how hot the weather, she would wrap herself in layers of clothing and pair it with a wide-brimmed sun hat. The soft brim of the hat would often droop down by her face, obscuring most of it. The sheer size of it always reminded Chi Yu of that restaurant that liked to serve two bites of salad on an enormous plate.

Chi Yu was very curious about He Zhi and had once asked her sister why Ran Jin’s mother dressed like that.

She remembered her sister laughing and saying, “Maybe she has something to hide.”

At the time, Chi Yu hadn’t picked up on the sarcasm in her sister’s words. Looking back now, she realized how oblivious she had been.

Although it was winter now, the mall’s heating was turned up very high, making Chi Yu, who didn’t usually sweat much, feel a bit hot. Yet, He Zhi in the coffee shop was still wearing a down jacket, wrapping herself up like a vampire.

So, Ran Jin had come to see her mother.

Considering Ran Jin’s previous avoidance of He Zhi, today’s meeting made Chi Yu very curious.

She quietly walked into the coffee shop and silently sat down in the booth behind Ran Jin.

Their conversation was already halfway through. Not knowing what had been said before, He Zhi suddenly grasped Ran Jin’s hand, her voice a little urgent, and said in a low voice, “It’s all in the past… We were helpless back then. Do you still hate us?”

Chi Yu thought, Ran Jin and her family indeed had issues. Her parents must have done something to wrong her back then.

Ran Jin pulled her hand away and said in a voice as emotionless as a news anchor’s, “Madam He, I think you’ve made a mistake.”

Madam He?

Chi Yu couldn’t help but ponder this peculiar form of address.

As far as Chi Yu knew, Ran Jin never liked to pay attention to her mother, almost always using cold violence to drive her away without saying a word. This was the first time Chi Yu had seen her communicate with He Zhi face-to-face.

It seemed that the conflict between Ran Jin and the Ran family was deeply rooted. She didn’t even call her own mother “Mom,” but instead used the very distant “Madam He.”

Chi Yu focused intently, waiting to hear their next exchange, but unexpectedly, Ran Jin didn’t speak to He Zhi again.

“Xiao Yu?”

Ran Jin’s voice came from behind Chi Yu.

Chi Yu turned her head and saw Ran Jin’s head peeking out from behind the sofa backrest, looking at her curiously.

Ran Jin, who had spotted Chi Yu in the reflection of the glass window, asked, “What are you doing here?”

Chi Yu had been caught eavesdropping red-handed. Helplessly, she put on a well-behaved smile and pretended to be surprised, saying, “Oh? Sister Ran, I went to your office and waited for a long time but you didn’t come back. I was thirsty, so I came down to get a drink.”

Chi Yu’s eyes met He Zhi’s gaze, which was scrutinizing her through her sunglasses.

Even though Chi Yu felt immense resistance towards Ran Jin when she saw her again, she still got up and sat down next to Ran Jin to avoid arousing suspicion, politely greeting He Zhi, “Hello, Auntie.”

“Hello…” He Zhi’s voice was a little hesitant, but she quickly said, “Then you two chat. Xiao Jin, your birthday is coming up soon. If you have time, remember to come home for a meal. Your father and I… miss you very much.”

This display of parental affection received no response. Ran Jin acted as if she hadn’t heard anything, not even directly refusing, treating He Zhi like air.

He Zhi gave Chi Yu an awkward smile and quickly got up to leave.

He Zhi left too quickly, almost with a sense of escape.

Chi Yu was still pondering He Zhi’s words when Ran Jin changed her tone and asked Chi Yu softly,

“Has your fever gone down? Why are you running around outside?”

“I’m already fine,” Chi Yu said, her voice uncontrollably turning cold as she thought of Ran Jin in the surveillance footage.

Ran Jin didn’t immediately believe her and instead carefully observed her face, “Your face is still flushed, your fever probably hasn’t gone down.”

She raised her hand and asked, “Can I feel your forehead?”

In the past, when Chi Yu was sick, it was very normal for Ran Jin, as an elder, to check her forehead temperature with the back of her hand, never asking for permission.

But now, perhaps because she had broken up with Chi Li and was no longer Chi Yu’s “sister-in-law,” or perhaps for other reasons, she began to ask for Chi Yu’s opinion before touching her.

Chi Yu didn’t want Ran Jin to touch her. Those hands were stained with her sister’s bl00d. Even though they looked white and slender now, perhaps it was psychological, but Chi Yu could always smell an unpleasant, bloody scent.

“No need,” Chi Yu said, trying her best to control her emotions. “I’m fine.”

Ran Jin awkwardly retracted her hand, “It’s good that you’re alright.”

Chi Yu knew that Ran Jin had been working alongside her sister in the business world for so many years and wasn’t a slow-witted ordinary person. If her disgust was too obvious, it might make her more wary, which wouldn’t be conducive to what she wanted to do later.

Unlike her coldness towards He Zhi, Ran Jin, even after being rejected once by Chi Yu, still proactively tried to start a conversation:

“Even if your fever has just gone down, it’s not good to be out and about all the time. It’s too cold, let me take you back.”

Chi Yu said, “The company still has a lot of things to do, right? I can go back by myself.”

“It’s okay, I’ll drive you home, and then I’ll go back to the company later.”

Chi Yu didn’t have a car in China. During this time back, she had been driving her sister’s car.

However, for the very busy Ran Jin to voluntarily offer to be her driver, still caring for her and doting on her like an elder, conveniently created an opportunity for them to be alone. Chi Yu planned to use this opportunity to get information out of Ran Jin.

But the time on the way home wasn’t very long.

Having adjusted her mindset, Chi Yu took Ran Jin’s arm, saying in the tender voice as she used to:

“Sister Ran, I really don’t have a fever anymore. When I went out, Aunt Su made a big table of food. I didn’t have much appetite then, so I only ate a little, and now I’m a bit hungry. Sister Ran, take me out to eat, okay?”

“Hmm? What do you want to eat?” Ran Jin’s voice changed slightly because of Chi Yu’s sudden closeness, but Chi Yu didn’t notice.

“Let’s eat at that Chinese restaurant upstairs, the one you and my sister used to take me to often. My stomach has suffered a lot these years abroad, I just want to eat some authentic Kung Pao Chicken.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

Chi Yu and Ran Jin went upstairs together. Chi Yu kept her arm linked with Ran Jin’s the whole time, to show that there was no barrier between them and to try and make Ran Jin lower her guard.

Chi Yu planned to use the mealtime to get information out of Ran Jin.

Ran Jin, being clung to by Chi Yu, kept smelling the perfume and the freshness of her shampoo. Her back was ramrod straight, looking like a red flag guard about to raise the national flag.

The only difference was that she almost tripped over her own feet several times.