There was only one week left before Su Jingyi's notice period would be over, yet Yun Zhen still remained perplexed on how he could convince her to stay in the company. Su Jingyi had already passed most of her responsibilities to the new director that will replace her, teaching the man the necessary skills to help the Yun Group in the future.

  "Are you sure you are worried about the company once Miss Su leaves, or it is you who don't know how to move on without her in your life?" Yun Ling asked his older brother as he slumped lazily on the couch across Yun Zhen's desk.

  Yun Zhen's pen stopped mid-air as he lifted his head to glare at his brother.

  "You've stayed here in Shenzhen for too long. Isn't it time for you to return to Beijing?" He retorted, not bothering to answer Yun Ling's question. However, he had to silently admit that his younger brother had a point.

  Was he really worried because of the company or was it he who wasn't quite ready to let go of Su Jingyi yet? He had gotten so used to having her around that he couldn't imagine a day without Su Jingyi in his life.

  Just the thought of her leaving him just to marry another man, forbidding her to return to his side was enough to annoy him to death. But how could he convince Su Jingyi to stay and marry him instead?

  Yun Ling rolled his eyes and popped another nut in his mouth before sitting upright, taking a can of soda on the coffee table and flicked it open.

  "I'm doing you a great favor here, bro. Have you talked about it with Miss Su? If you don't want her to leave, you have to convince her and give her a reason to stay." He pointed out.

  "I asked her to marry me instead." Yun Zhen informed his brother, a deep frown marring his face.

  Yun Ling, who was taking a sip of his drink, coughed behind his hand, his eyes stung with tears. Damn it, how could his brother be so careless!

  "Y-you what?" He asked Yun Zhen in disbelief.

  Did he hear him right? Did Yun Zhen really mean it? Yun Ling was in favor of Su Jingyi becoming his brother's wife. In all honesty, the two get along so well that if people didn't know that they were merely long-time friends, they would assume that they were lovers for years.

  "I said I asked Su Jingyi to marry me instead." Yun Zhen was annoyed that he had to repeat himself, even though he was sure that his brother had heard him clearly.

  Yun Ling stared at his brother as if his brother had gained another head over his shoulder. His oblivious brother suddenly jumped into a marriage proposal without courting Su Jingyi?

  "A-and what did she say?" He probed, curious to know how his brother's proposal went.

  Wait. Did this mean he was gaining a new sister-in-law soon? It's good that his brother was now considering settling down with Su Jingyi as the Yun family had also been wondering when they would decide to cross the line of being friends and marry each other.

  "Su Jingyi said she cannot marry me, but she can marry a stranger." Yun Zhen scowled. "She asked me to give her a reason why she should marry me."

  He didn't understand why his brother was interested in his personal affairs, but since they were younger, the two have never kept secrets from each other.

  "And you haven't given her an answer yet?" Yun Ling knew very well how his elder brother's gears worked. Yun Zhen probably messed up his proposal to Su Jingyi.

  Yun Zhen only answered with a silence, which made his younger brother groan. He knew it. He knew his older brother messed up big time.

  "Damn, did you just give Miss Su a half-ass proposal in your poor attempt to convince her to stay? For a smart man like you, bro, you are quite slow and naive when it comes to women!" He chastised his elder brother.

  If Su Jingyi truly denied his brother, it would be impossible for Yun Zhen to find another woman as good as her. How could he be so ins.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to the woman who had loved him and stayed by his side for several years? Yun Ling had never seen or met a woman as dedicated as Su Jingyi.

  "Don't you know that most women are sentimental when it comes to marriage proposals? You just asked her out of the blue without showing sincerity, of course she would turn you down! What did you expect her to do? Jump for joy?" Yun Ling frowned.

  "Then what am I supposed to do?" Yun Zhen snapped. Both his brother and Su Jingyi told him that his proposal was tasteless. Of course he knew that, but what did they expect him to do? Asking Su Jingyi for marriage was something he'd only thought of recently.

  "Show her your sincerity of course! Tell her through your words and actions why she should marry you. I can't believe I'm having this talk with you." Yun Ling grumbled to himself. "And don't make her feel like she should be grateful that you are doing a favor by marrying her!"

  At those words, Yun Zhen suddenly realized what was wrong with his marriage proposal. He put down his pen and covered half of his face with one hand.

  Was that why Su Jingyi turned him down? Did his words give her the impression that she should be grateful that he was asking for her hand for marriage? But that was certainly not his intention at all!

  Was there something he could do to fix all of this?