CHAPTER 355: CHAPTER 355: THE PROPOSAL CEREMONY

An Junxi’s action scared Gu Yikun into a cold sweat. He pulled her back, causing An Junxi to bump into his chest just as the elevator doors fully closed.

As the elevator slowly ascended, Gu Yikun raised his hand and smacked An Junxi’s butt, "One day, you’ll be the death of me. That move just now was so dangerous!"

An Junxi winced in pain, rubbing the spot innocently, "You hit me so hard, it hurts!"

Gu Yikun raised his hand again, and An Junxi genuinely got scared, stepping back, "If you bully me again, I’m telling Mom and Dad!"

Gu Yikun was at a loss with her. He reached out to rub her gently, "Let your husband check if it’s red when we’re back in the room."

An Junxi’s face turned red as she pushed his hand away, "Dream on. I’m not showing you."

Gu Yikun pinched her nose, "I’m worried about you. Can’t you understand your husband a little?"

An Junxi pouted, "I didn’t do it on purpose just now. I thought I heard Ai Xi’s voice and wanted to take a closer look."

Gu Yikun said, "You just miss our daughter too much. Kids’ voices all sound similar."

An Junxi agreed that she might have overthought it. Many families travel with children, and it’s normal to hear kids in the hotel. She must have misheard.

Back in the room, Gu Yikun insisted on checking the spot he slapped, "Does it really hurt? I barely touched you."

An Junxi escaped into the bathroom to shower, "I’m not talking to you anymore."

Gu Yikun tried to twist the door open, and An Junxi quickly locked it, "I can shower by myself!"

Gu Yikun’s phone rang; it was a call from his mother. He told An Junxi, "I’m stepping out for a bit. Get some rest after you finish showering."

An Junxi thought Gu Yikun was lying. When she came out of the shower, she couldn’t find him in the room.

What could he be busy with so late?

She lay on the sofa applying a face mask, the cool sensation making her feel comfortable. She closed her eyes to rest and ended up dozing off for over an hour.

In a daze, she turned over and accidentally fell onto the carpet, waking up. It was already past midnight.

Gu Yikun hadn’t returned yet.

An Junxi finally felt something was off. She got up to call him. He answered after a while, briefly saying, "I’ll be back soon. Get some sleep if you’re tired."

Before An Junxi could speak, he hung up.

An Junxi stood there dumbfounded. Yi Ke usually doesn’t hang up on her like that.

She changed into a casual long shirt, applied some moisturizer on her face, and went out, wanting to check if he was working in the conference room.

She remembered Gu Yikun mentioning the conference room was on the 39th floor, but she found it empty.

The door outside the office area was locked, indicating no one was inside.

Returning to the elevator, she coincidentally ran into a security guard on patrol. The Russian guard recognized An Junxi and greeted her in Russian.

An Junxi asked him in broken Russian, "Where is the president?"

The guard only spoke Russian. He wrote "56" and "23:40" and gestured for a long time before An Junxi understood—he saw the president on the 56th floor at 11:40 PM.

An Junxi thanked him and suddenly realized that’s the floor of He Sirui’s room.

An Junxi didn’t feel like going there to find him.

She wanted to return to the room but realized she forgot her room card and phone.

In a luxurious suite somewhere, Gu Yikun was comforting their daughter, "Baby, sleep now. You’ll see mommy tomorrow."

Ai Xi had not seen her dad in a long time. She clung to his clothes, trying hard to stay awake, afraid that if she slept, he would leave again, "I want daddy and mommy."

Liang Huiyun came in from an adjacent room and said, "Jin Xiu is asleep, but Ai Xi still won’t sleep?"

Ai Xi clung tightly to her dad’s clothes, "Not sleeping."

Liang Huiyun tapped her cheek, "This little smartypants is afraid you’ll go on another business trip."

Gu Yikun asked, "Did she sleep on the plane?"

"Both kids did. Ai Xi wasn’t used to her first flight and didn’t sleep well. She’s been tired since, and when she saw you in the lobby earlier, she insisted on finding mommy and daddy."

Gu Yikun kissed his daughter’s head, feeling sorry for her, "Baby, be good. Daddy promises if Ai Xi sleeps now, you’ll get toys and see mommy and daddy tomorrow."

The sentence was a bit long for Ai Xi, so she took a while to understand her dad’s meaning. She pondered—what should she do?

Gu Yikun extended his pinky finger, "Let’s pinky promise."

Ai Xi knew that pinky promises couldn’t be broken.

She extended her small, chubby hand to pinky promise with her dad, saying, "Sleep first, then see mommy."

"Okay, daddy promises."

Only then did Ai Xi close her eyes to sleep in her dad’s arms. Gu Yikun placed her on the bed after she fell asleep and went out to the hall to ask his parents, "I’ll need more help from you with the kids tomorrow."

Gu Kuangyong said, "You handle your work. We’re pros at taking care of kids."

Liang Huiyun whispered, "In-laws are resting in the room downstairs. You’ve set up this grand proposal. Does Jun Xi really have no clue?"

Gu Yikun thought of his little confused wife and his eyes softened, "She thinks she’s just accompanying me on a business trip, completely unaware."

Liang Huiyun didn’t know what to say, "She seems smart usually but can be quite clueless at times."

Gu Kuangyong said, "She’s never handled such occasions and tends to get nervous, so it’s understandable she wouldn’t think much of it."

Gu Yikun kissed his daughter, "I’ll go up now. I wonder if Jun Xi waited for me."

"Go ahead. We should get some rest too."

Gong Xiaoyu and Yu Zheng walked through the hotel lobby. Gong Xiaoyu casually glanced around and suddenly pulled Yu Zheng behind a pillar, "Check if the person by the sofa is Jun Xi?"

Yu Zheng had sharp eyesight and confirmed with a glance, "Yes, it’s her."

Gong Xiaoyu muttered, "It’s so late. How can Gu Yikun let her sit in the lobby alone? Where did he go?"

Gong Xiaoyu wanted to go call An Junxi, but Yu Zheng pulled her towards another elevator, "Let the president come down. We can’t reveal ourselves."

Gong Xiaoyu almost forgot, "Right, we need to surprise her."

Thanks to Jun Xi, this was Gong Xiaoyu’s first time taking a private jet to Russia. The treatment was top-notch, but President Gu was quite careless, leaving Jun Xi alone in the lobby late at night!

Gu Yikun returned to their room but didn’t see An Junxi.

He checked the bathroom, the small room, and the balcony. She really wasn’t there.

Her phone was on the table, and she didn’t take the room card either.

Gu Yikun panicked. Where could she have gone so late?

He grabbed his phone and headed out. Before he reached the elevator, Yu Zheng informed him, "Madam fell asleep in the lobby."

Gu Yikun went down to the first floor and saw An Junxi sleeping soundly on the sofa from a distance.

The staff on duty saw the president coming down and lined up to greet him. Gu Yikun pointed towards the sofa and asked, "How long has my wife been sleeping there? Why didn’t anyone send her back to the room or give her a blanket? Have the manager come see me!"