My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

Shi Nian blinked a few times and the weird feeling dissipated before she had the chance to identify it. Si Zhening was still looking at her with the same polite smile. Bowing, Shi Nian introduced herself. "Hello, Mr. Si, my name is Shi Nian. We have met before."

"Ah, yes." Si Zhening's smile deepened as he returned Shi Nian's bow. "We have indeed met before, Miss Shi."

"I asked Secretary Si to deal with my discharge procedure and…" Jiang Jinyan's words trailed off and he grabbed Shi Nian's hand, frowning. "Why are your hands trembling? Are you cold?" he proceeded to rub her hands to keep the temperature up.

"Eh…?" Shi Nian looked at the trembling fingertips, confused. "You're…right? The weather must have been too cold. I will leave you and Mr. Si to talk for a while." She squeezed Jiang Jinyan's fingers and smiled. "I will wait for you outside, okay?"

Jiang Jinyan's eyes thawed and he replied with a faint smile.

Shi Nian gathered her coat and walked out, passing by Si Zhening along the way. A faint fragrance wafted into her nose. It seemed like cologne, but there was also a slight chill that came from autumn wind. Kind of…familiar and unsettling.

In an instant, some images formed in her mind. Ground covered in snow, polished shoes, towering figure and a pair of gold rimmed glasses. Once again, it disappeared before Shi Nian could discern what it was. Frown appeared between her brows and she sat on the bench outside Jiang Jinyan's room. 

It was weird. Shi Nian rubbed her chest. Why was her heart beating so fast?

Shi Nian pulled out her phone and entered the search engine. [Snow phenomena in China.] The results came out in a split second. The topmost article attracted her attention. [Meteorologists have predicted that Capital City will finally welcome snow for the first time in five years!]

She clicked the article and read it thoroughly. [The weather in China has always been unpredictable. For the last five years, Capital City has maintained the top rank for the city which has the lowest temperature change, contrary to City A and City S which are almost covered in snow when winter arrives. However, this year, the meteorologists have predicted that Capital City will finally welcome snow for the first time in five years! The climate changes are observed to fluctuate 30% more than last year. Entering the last few days of autumn, the temperature has almost dropped to ten degrees Celsius…]

Shi Nian leaned her head back on the wall and stared blankly in daze.

Snow. As long as she could remember, the last time she had played in the snow was two years ago. Even in her last memory at the convenience store, it wasn't snowing. 

So, where did the memory of Si Zhening and snow come from? Did she somehow meet the man a few years back but forgot about it in the end?

Shi Nian didn't know how long she spent the time racking her brain. Being a person with memory loss was really worrisome. She couldn't help but assume every imagination and every dream to be the fragment of her lost memories, unable to discern whether it really happened or not.

Moreover, it had almost been six months but she still couldn't remember anything. How frustrating.

The door to Jiang Jinyan's room slid open amidst her self doubt and Si Zhening stepped out. Shi Nian's eyes couldn't help but fall onto the man's polished shoes. It overlapped with the scene in her memory, not even a single deviation.

"Miss Shi," Si Zhening bowed. "Sorry to have made you wait. Young Master Jiang and I have finished talking so feel free to enter." He was ready to turn away when Shi Nian called out to him.

"Mr. Si!"

"Yes?" He gave a courteous and amicable smile. "Is there something wrong?"

"Hmm…" Shi Nian wrung her fingers nervously. "Will Jiang Jinyan really be discharged from the hospital?"

Si Zhening gave a helpless look. "It's Young Master's order and I can't win against his stubbornness. Moreover, he's worried about his father so he's not in any capacity to wait any longer."

"His father?" Shi Nian was worried. "Did something happen to him?"

"As of now, no. But everything hasn't been confirmed yet." He smiled and nodded slightly. "If you'll excuse me."

Shi Nian stared at his face and blurted out the question before thinking. "Mr. Si, have we met somewhere before? Not in the hospital, but somewhere else, it's on a snowy day…"

Si Zhening showed a puzzled look. "A snowy day?"

Shi Nian shook her head, apologetic. "No, I am very sorry. I might have taken you for someone else."

"Is that so?" Si Zhening laughed softly. "I have been told that I have a very common face so I think that's the case."

Shi Nian could tell that he was trying to alleviate the awkwardness and her goodwill toward the man rose slightly. "Sorry for delaying you, Mr. Si. Please go ahead."

Si Zhening nodded once again, turned around and walked down the hallway. His steps rang out steady and composed. The corner of his lips was still curling up but behind those gold rimmed glasses, no emotion could be seen from his eyes. Slowly, like a robot he turned down his lips and his face remained cold and expressionless until he got to the nurse station.

  ***

"Are you really going to be discharged today?" Shi Nian asked worriedly.

"Yes." Seeing her looking so anxious, Jiang Jinyan's lips tilted up. "I am really okay. Don't worry."

"But…But the doctor prohibited you to." Carefully, she probed. "You can't wait until you get the doctor's permission?"

"No." Jiang Jinyan pulled her closer by her hand and fiddled with her thin, slender fingers. "It seems like something has happened to my father. I…am a little worried about him." His voice barely ended in a whisper and with his head hung low, Shi Nian was unable to see his expression clearly.

So, the reason why he looked so restless and anxious was because of his father? Well, if Shi Nian were in his position and something happened to Qiang Fei when she was hospitalized, she would also try whatever she could to get to her, even if she had to crawl out from the window.

Sighing, Shi Nian reached out to stroke his hair. "Don't worry." She hugged his shoulder loosely. "Don't worry, Jiang Jinyan. Everything will be okay."

"Ha…" Jiang Jinyan's head was buried into her shoulder as he let out a breathless laugh. "Why…if you say it like that, I really feel like everything will be fine?"

The tip of Shi Nian's ears reddened and her heart raced so fast that she was sure Jiang Jinyan would be able to hear it loud and clear. Every word that came out from his mouth tasted like honey, very sweet and euphonious, making her whole body feel warm especially when she sensed that Jiang Jinyan didn't seem to have any intention of pushing her away anymore.

"…Aren't your heart beating a little too fast?" he asked quietly.

Shi Nian answered with a vague hum. "Really? Maybe…because I am just worried about you."

What to do? She liked this man more and more, so much to the point where she had started to miss him even before he left. Shi Nian tried to suppress the anxiety and restlessness in her heart and hugged him closer instead, trying to imprint his every breath and presence into her mind.

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A/N: Finally, will Jiang Jinyan get to meet his father, or even reconcile? Both of them are victims and they have already been hurt enough. My poor babies QAQ

We have finally reached both of our monthly goals: more than 100 GTs AND 1000 privi unlocks!!! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ thank you very much, my dearies for your support! Let me love you with a mass release on the first day of December later. Expect more than 5 chappies ;))