My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

Shi Nian was stunned. Ever since Nan Xukun learned of her name, this was the first time he called her out loud. Usually, he would always say 'little meimei' or 'sweetheart' or 'cutie pie'. To her surprise, Shi Nian actually saw the seriousness in his usual lopsided grin.

She blinked and wrote. [I don't know.]

"You don't know?" He tutted. "The answer to this question is only two; yes or no."

[I don't know you enough to make a judgement.]

Young Master Nan was dumbfounded seeing her earnest gaze and the way she tried to answer his question so seriously. A burst of heat spread through his chest, making it sting but not painful. Just a little itchy, compelling him to hug the person in front of him.

Thus, Young Master Nan did exactly what he thought. He was always an action oriented person. But this time, he didn't do it directly, but asked first. "May I hug you for once?"

Shi Nian's eyes turned vigilant and slowly, her butt scooted backward until she was further and further away.

The way she was so guarded against him was too adorable that he burst out in a fit of cheery laughter. He had long past the age where his voice changed, but the way he talked always made it seem like he deliberately pinched his voice and made it sound higher.

But his laugh right now…

Shi Nian stared deeply. It was unexpectedly mellow, smooth and low. It befitted him very much. Somehow, Shi Nian even felt like he sounded familiar as if she had heard it somewhere before.

"I will be discharged from the hospital today." Before she could delve deeper into her thoughts, Nan Xukun's voice pulled her back to reality. Shi Nian lifted her head, stunned for a moment before breaking into a genuine small smile.

[Congratulations!!!] She added three exclamation marks in the end to show the jubilant mood.

Nan Xukun smiled and his eyes crinkled, turning into a pair of crescent moons. "So, can I hug you?"

Shi Nian hesitated and she glanced toward the corner of the hallway where Xu Binchen's subordinate was. Xu Binchen himself had been missing in action ever since this morning and his phone was ringing nonstop. Seemed like something had happened in the police but he didn't want to let her know.

"Why are you so worried about him? Come here, give gege a hug." Young Master Nan was still Young Master Nan. He leaned forward and enveloped her in a warm hug. His arms circled around her shoulder loosely. Shi Nian was stunned silly and she froze. Before she could push him away, he had returned to his position with a sweet smile. "How is it? Easy right?"

Xu Binchen's subordinate stared wide eyed in shock. He didn't know whether he should report this or not…He hesitated, but in the end, he decided not to. What? Even a single hug needed to be reported?

Shi Nian was still frozen, not because of the shock of Nan Xukun's hug but because when he came closer, his scent enveloped her and wafted into her nose. The mixture of spearmint, musky cologne and a sweet familiar fragrance seeped into her. It was so familiar, so close that the words were hanging on the tip of her tongue but she couldn't remember it as if there was a mist covering her memory.

"Little meimei?" Nan Xukun waved his hand in front of her eyes. "What's wrong? Are you that mesmerized by me? Should I hug you again?"

Shi Nian's train of thoughts broke and she snapped out of her stupor. She glared, her lips pursed into thin lines.

Nan Xukun laughed again. "Believe it or not. I am really happy here. You don't know right, little meimei. I have yearned for ordinary life since a long time ago." Nan Xukun's smile slipped and a hint of sadness appeared between the curl of his lips. "Ordinary life, ordinary parents, ordinary family. I really, really want it. But everyone whom I said it to would tell me how ungrateful I am and how many people would kill to be in my position. If I could, I would gladly exchange it with them."

Shi Nian blinked her eyes, and didn't know what to say amidst his soliloquy.

"Do you want it too?" He asked, but his eyes looked past her as if he was seeing something through her. "Do you also think that money is the most important thing in this world? That money is the source of happiness?" He sat in a daze for a moment and blinked. Instantly, the melancholic young master vanished and the usual silly Nan Xukun returned. "Aiyah, look at me! What am I saying to you?" He chuckled as he rubbed her head. "I don't know what happened to you, but I wish you well so that you can speak again."

Shi Nian silently erased the word of consolation and exchanged it with a simple thank you.

Young Master Nan sighed as he stood up. "In here, there will be no one who will monitor me, who will dictate my behavior, who will educate me harshly and also," He bowed to look at her. "There's also you, a little meimei who doesn't change her behavior after knowing my identity. Can we exchange WeChat ID?"

Somehow, Shi Nian had a speculation that those heartrending words were just opening to what he truly wanted to ask at the end of the sentence. She was rendered speechless by her own thoughts. Shi Nian then recalled that her phone was bought by Xu Binchen and she hadn't had the chance to return it back to him yet.

Furthermore, Young Master Nan—the sole heir of Henan Corporation's WeChat ID? Maybe, tens of thousands of people would kill to be in Shi Nian's position. He wasn't wrong. His life was privileged since birth, everything revolved around him. He certainly couldn't be compared to someone ordinary like Shi Nian. Everyone wanted to be him, but only he himself knew how it felt to be him.

If not for his accident, maybe they wouldn't cross paths in this lifetime.

Shi Nian gingerly took out her phone and exchanged her WeChat ID with him. She couldn't restrain her curiosity and waved her board in front of his eyes. [Have we met before?]

Nan Xukun stared at her words in surprise.

Heat crept up Shi Nian's cheeks. Why did it sound very much like an overused pick up line? But truly, somehow, Shi Nian felt that he was kind of familiar. But this kind of eccentric young master, she wouldn't forget it if they had met before so…where did this kind of familiarity come from?

Nan Xukun quickly recovered from his surprise and smiled. It was the kind of profound, mysterious smile that made her heart skip a beat. He gently pushed her forehead with his forefinger and sang out. "You have to think of it yourself~"

Shi Nian blinked. So it was a yes??

Young Master Nan looked at her for the last time before walking away. He waved his hand without turning back, arrogantly showing off the silhouette of his back before disappearing into a corner. Shi Nian's phone beeped and a new chat came in.

The profile picture was totally black in color without any pattern or embellishment and his name consisted of three letters that were capitalized. KUN.

"If you remember it, don't forget to tell me [wink..jpg]."