Can He Apologize in Person?

Hearing Song Anning's request to stay with him, Cen Muxiao fell silent. Song Anning had only come to the Imperial Capital after graduating from university. When he first arrived, he had no one to rely on and could only contact Cen Muxiao, an alumnus he had been fairly close with.

Back in university, Cen Muxiao had already developed feelings for Song Anning, but he had never shown them. He had always treated him as a friend, until after graduation, when he returned to a university in the Imperial Capital to further his studies.

He had thought they would never cross paths again, but unexpectedly, Song Anning came to the Imperial Capital and found him.

Cen Muxiao suddenly felt as though light had appeared at the end of the tunnel. Perhaps his chance had come again!

He helped arrange a hotel for him, but not long after Song Anning moved in, he developed an allergic reaction. A hospital examination revealed that he was allergic to the hotel linens, likely due to the detergent.

That gave him an even better chance to show himself, so he brought Song Anning directly to his home for a temporary stay.

At the time, the Cen family still maintained a superficial peace, and Cen Group was still struggling before the turmoil hit.

Standing outside the storm, he could still peacefully live as the young master of a wealthy family, so bringing an outsider home felt perfectly natural.

To make Song Anning comfortable, every item in his room had undergone special disinfection. Cen Muxiao personally oversaw his food, clothing, and daily necessities. He had never been so attentive to anyone else.

However, later on, there were more and more matters at home. His father even fell ill and was hospitalized, leaving him too overwhelmed to care for Song Anning.

Fortunately, Song Anning was understanding. After staying for a while, he no longer wanted to trouble him and rented a place of his own. Cen Muxiao did not insist on keeping him.

Three years had passed. He had nearly forgotten!

"Alright."

Though circumstances had changed, Cen Muxiao still could not bring himself to refuse. Besides, he had kept that room exactly as it had been.

"Thank you!"

Song Anning secretly let out a breath of relief, but as if recalling something, he cautiously asked, "Then... do I need to let your... marriage alliance partner know?"

Song Anning truly did not want to say "wife" or "partner." He felt that, other than himself, no one was worthy of being called Cen Muxiao's wife or partner.

Sure enough, Cen Muxiao's reply the next second delighted him.

He heard him respond icily, "No need. My affairs are not his to decide. Just stay here without worry."

To Cen Muxiao, no matter how polite Song Anning was, he was still an acquaintance. Guo Lantai, on the other hand, was a complete stranger.

Knock, knock, knock!

Before he could say anything else, a knock suddenly sounded from outside the door.

"Who is it?"

"President Cen, Mrs. Cen asked me to pass along a message. He's been surrounded by reporters, and they keep asking about your friend. Please go and take a look!"

The attendant, Little Li, relayed the message through the door, his heart pounding. He had no idea whether he had interrupted the important people inside.

The moment Song Anning heard "Mrs. Cen," his expression darkened. What was the use of him not mentioning it? In other people's eyes, didn't Mrs. Cen still mean someone had already claimed the position?

He had openly taken over someone else's nest!

He regretted it somewhat. Why had he not come back sooner?

If he had returned earlier and stayed by Cen Muxiao's side, what place would there have been for that Guo fellow?

Who sold regret medicine?

After hearing the person outside, Cen Muxiao's face turned cold.

He did not know Guo Lantai well. The moment Song Anning appeared, Guo Lantai had boldly kissed him to declare his claim. Before the reporters, who knew how he might badmouth Song Anning?

Although he had already warned him, Cen Muxiao was still uneasy. He had to keep an eye on things himself!

"You rest here. Once it's over, I'll come back and take you home!"

After giving him a brief instruction, Cen Muxiao hurried back to the banquet hall.

After searching around, he finally spotted Guo Lantai in a corner, chatting with a beautiful woman.

The two sat facing each other, seemingly exchanging questions and answers, talking quite happily.

Cen Muxiao did not approach directly. Instead, he called over his secretary and asked, "Who is sitting opposite Guo Lantai?"

Following his gaze, the secretary identified her and obediently replied, "President Cen, that is Cindy, editor-in-chief of Nine Charms Magazine. She has always wanted to interview you, but you have turned her down every time."

"I remember that every media outlet attending today promised that no published content could be made public without my approval, correct?"

Cen Muxiao hated dealing with media reporters most of all, so he almost never accepted interviews.

His only nationwide public appearance had been at the press conference when he took over as president of Cen Group. Other than that, he turned down whatever he could.

Even the announcement of this wedding had not included any statement from him in person.

The secretary promptly nodded. "Yes, President Cen. They are all legitimate media outlets and magazines. They would never fabricate stories. I will personally follow up afterward, so please rest assured."

At that, Cen Muxiao nodded slightly. Then his gaze slid toward the two people chatting and laughing, and he instructed his secretary, "Make sure you get Cindy's interview notes for me first. Then go over there now and bring Guo Lantai here."

How could the secretary refuse his order? "Alright, I'll handle it immediately!"

After dismissing his secretary, Cen Muxiao had barely turned around when he saw two people approaching him.

"President Guo, Mrs. Guo!"

The pair were none other than Guo Lantai's parents, Guo Huaiyuan and Lan Yezi.

Cen Muxiao understood that the purpose of this marriage alliance was merely mutual commercial benefit. Since that was the case, he could not even be bothered with some of the polite formalities, much less force himself to call them father-in-law and mother-in-law.

It was nothing but self-deception!

If the collaboration project with Guo Group had not happened to be at a critical point when he seized power, this marriage alliance might never have existed.

Still, businessmen valued their word, and Cen Muxiao was not the sort to burn bridges after crossing them. He would honor what he had promised, but this marriage alliance had a time limit after all.

Both sides shared this understanding. Once their interests ceased to be tied together, the marriage alliance would end as well.

"President Cen, Lantai was thoughtless earlier and offended you. His mother and I would like to apologize on his behalf. We hope you won't hold it against him."

As Guo Huaiyuan spoke, he dipped his head slightly in apology. Though they were also dissatisfied with Song Anning for disrupting things midway, they could not exactly blame Cen Muxiao for it.

Lan Yezi, however, had a different attitude. She raised her eyes at Cen Muxiao, her tone faintly sarcastic. "Our Tai Bao can be a little willful, but everyone has a temper, don't they? He has his pride too. He was openly provoked like that. If he still reacted like an idiot and did nothing, then he'd really be a fool!"

"Oh, just stop talking! Why bring that up?"

Guo Huaiyuan tugged at his wife, trying to stop her from speaking.

"Oh, why should I stop? He wants to save face, and shouldn't we want to save face even more?"

Lan Yezi was blunt by nature. As she spoke, she turned directly to Cen Muxiao and asked, "President Cen, isn't that right?"

After a moment of silence, Cen Muxiao still nodded in acknowledgment. "Mrs. Guo has a point. My friend was indeed abrupt, so I should be the one apologizing to you both."

"No! Please don't say that, President Cen!"

Guo Huaiyuan was startled and hurriedly waved his hands to stop him. They could not possibly accept Cen Muxiao's apology.

"Dad! Mom!"

As the three spoke, Guo Lantai had already arrived before them. He smiled gently and said, "Since Mr. Cen has apologized, then you should accept it."

"Lantai!"

"Tai Bao!"

Guo Lantai looked at them, then at Cen Muxiao, his smile sincere. "Mr. Cen said that we must all remember our place and know what should be said and done. I assume Mr. Cen acts by those same standards. Your friend behaved improperly, and so many people saw it. It is only right to apologize on his behalf!"

Cen Muxiao looked back at him with furrowed brows. "You certainly know how to apply what you learn."

Guo Lantai lifted a brow and asked, "What else should I do? Then can your friend come out and apologize in person?"

Guo Lantai knew that bastard wouldn't bear to make him do it!