Chapter 21 is, of course, about the groom.

Jiang Ran rode his bike very slowly, and the more he talked, the more resentful he became.

"When the baby is born, he will be the treasure of the whole family, and I will be just the grass by the roadside. When he gets older, when you introduce me, you can say that I am the baby's male nanny."

Su Mu's lips twitched slightly.

The car was at an intersection where the main road turned into a side road.

There were low shrubs on both sides of the road. A few meters later, Su Mu suddenly raised his hand and patted Jiang Ran's arm: "Stop for a moment."

Jiang Ran braked, and before he could ask what was wrong, Su Mu got out of the car. Jiang Ran watched him turn around, walk a few steps back, and then stop in front of a thick patch of weeds by the roadside, bending down slightly.

"What did you see?" Jiang Ran also got out of the car and followed after them.

Inside, curled up, was a small, grayish creature, no bigger than a palm, rising and falling gently with its faint breathing. It was a puppy, its fur very light-colored, making it impossible to tell its breed—just a common mongrel. Its eyes were tightly closed, its eyelids still pink, and its nose was wet and twitching slightly.

It seemed to sense the light and human voices, and its tiny limbs began to move unconsciously. Its pink paws scratched futilely in the air, and it made extremely faint, kitten-like whimpers from its throat, each whimper becoming more urgent, filled with an instinctive fear of this strange world.

Jiang Ran saw it clearly and almost simultaneously stretched out her arm, blocking Su Mu's path: "Don't touch it! You absolutely cannot touch it right now."

His gaze darted quickly between the little creature and Su Mu: "Who knows if it has fleas or diseases? You can't touch it now."

Su Mu remained bent over, his gaze still fixed on the dusty little thing. The puppy seemed to sense the warmth that was closer, its whimpers becoming more urgent, and its little head blindly tilted towards Su Mu.

Su Mu straightened up and turned to look at Jiang Ran.

"What should I do? Jiang Ran, I seem to have no way to resist anything related to cubs now."

His gaze returned to the puppy, and Jiang Ran found it hard to resist his intense, tender eyes.

Jiang Ran met his gaze, and then her tension and guardedness crumbled little by little under Su Mu's calm and gentle gaze. Her outstretched arm fell to her sides, and she sighed.

"Okay," he declared, surrendering.

Then Jiang Ran turned around, went back to the car, and picked up his coat from the back seat. He held the collar, turned the coat inside out, so that the soft lining was facing out, walked back to Su Mu's side, squatted down again, and carefully, almost clumsily, wrapped the wet, cold, trembling little gray ball with the lining of his coat, leaving only a whimpering little head sticking out.

"That's the only way," he muttered, then placed the little dog wrapped in a coat in front of him, glanced at Su Mu, and said, "Get in the car."

The little thing, wrapped in Jiang Ran's coat, went home with them.

"There were quite a lot of these little mongrel dogs in the countryside when I was a kid."

Back then, it seemed like every household kept dogs to guard their homes. They didn't need to be fancy; just a few leftovers were enough. Female dogs gave birth anywhere—in haystacks, in corners of woodsheds, or even by the roadside—litter after litter.

If too many puppies were born, the owners couldn't keep them all, or they simply didn't want them anymore. They would put them in a snakeskin bag and, under cover of darkness, abandon them on a distant riverbank or in an even more remote ravine. Some were lucky enough to survive and become stray dogs; most, however, simply perished.

“My family also had one,” Su Mu said. “It was called Xiaohua. It was the most common yellow and white color, with two tufts of white hair above its eyes that looked like eyebrows. It was quite funny. It was very smart. It would help my mom carry baskets and would wag its tail and wait for me at the village entrance when I came home from school.”

"Later," Su Mu's voice lowered, "some outsiders came to the village, driving an old van, saying they were dog collectors. They didn't pay much, but some people were always tempted by that small profit. Then, some people's dogs started disappearing without a trace. Xiao Hua was also caught, but she came back on her own."

"There was a long gash on its stomach, and its intestines almost fell out. I don't know how it dragged its body like that from who knows how far away it was, step by step, back to die under the tree in my yard. Its blood stained the soil around the tree roots red."

“My family has never kept a dog since then.”

Jiang Ran said, "Those people are really bad."

When they got home, Su's mother saw the little thing they had brought back and said, "It's a puppy!" She rummaged through the storage room and found a few old cotton clothes that were faded but clean. She carefully made a soft nest for it in a sheltered cardboard box in the corner of the living room.

Jiang Ran carefully placed the puppy, along with its coat, into its bed. The puppy, now away from human warmth, seemed uneasy and began to whine softly, its little head turning aimlessly.

Su's mother found a brand new syringe, mixed some milk with warm water, and drew it into the syringe. She tested the temperature, then squatted down and very carefully brought it to the puppy's mouth.

The starving little creature immediately caught the scent of milk, instinctively moving closer, its pink little mouth eagerly taking the syringe tip into its mouth, greedily sucking. The swallowing sounds were subtle and rapid, and its little belly visibly swelled up.

Puppies should be older before they can be vaccinated.

Su Mu squatted down beside it, watching with a soft look in her eyes: "It can eat so much."

Jiang Ran squatted down next to Su Mu, looking at the little life struggling to eat: "You mean feeding a baby, is it the same feeling as this?"

Su Mu looked at the little gray ball of fur that had finally eaten and drunk its fill, curled up in the old clothes, and made a soft, contented purring sound: "Maybe."

Hearing the two young people's hushed conversation, Su's mother couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Feeding a child isn't as simple as feeding a puppy. Just getting up a few times at night can wear you out. Not to mention the sick ones, the crying ones, and when they grow up, you still have to worry about their studies and jobs..."

Jiang Ran squatted by the cardboard box, listening to Su's mother's words, then looked at the puppy in the kennel that was sleeping soundly with its belly rising and falling, and then secretly glanced at Su Mu's profile next to her. That indescribable feeling in her heart, a mixture of nervousness, novelty and a certain secret sense of responsibility, welled up again.

I think the aunt is right, it's definitely different, much more complicated.

Jiang Ran had indeed bookmarked an online course called "Essential Guide for New Parents" when she was randomly searching online. It supposedly covered everything from prenatal nutrition to newborn care and how to deal with postpartum emotions.

He clicked on the course link, and the page redirected, displaying colorful icons and the eye-catching words "Limited-Time Offer".

Without thinking, he casually clicked "share".

His intention was to share it with Su Mu. A list of recent contacts popped up, and he tapped it without thinking. Su Mu was sitting right next to him, and he eagerly handed over his phone, eager to show off: "Hey, Mu Mu, look at this, I found a course..."

Before he could finish speaking, he noticed that his phone had been shared to the group chat.

A group chat between four university students.

Because the skinny monkey had just sent a message inside a few seconds earlier.

A few seconds of deathly silence.

Then, Su Mu's phone screen lit up with a notification.

Skinny Monkey: ?

Next up was Fatty Knife.

Fei Dao's family runs a martial arts school. Usually at this time, he's either leading his students in practice or doing extra training himself, keeping him incredibly busy. Who would have thought he'd have time to scroll through his phone and actually catch this groundbreaking post?

His message followed immediately: !!! What did I just see?! New parents?! Young Master Jiang?! Is that what I think it means?! [Shocked][Eating popcorn][Peeking around]

Jiang Ran immediately withdrew.

The next second, Su Mu's phone vibrated, the screen lit up, and the caller ID showed the face of Skinny Monkey, who was making faces at the camera. Su Mu glanced at Jiang Ran, who immediately stiffly looked away, pretending to study the corrugated structure of the dog-shaped cardboard box.

The video call connected.

Skinny Monkey's face, distorted with excitement, almost burst out of the screen: "Wooden head! Wooden head! Huge gossip! Shocking gossip!!!"

The screen showed a dimly lit area, likely in a company stairwell. He had just finished yelling "Big gossip!" when he started looking at Su Mu's surroundings.

The wall behind Su Mu was not a whitewashed lime wall, nor was it the wallpaper in the small apartment Su Mu rented in the city. Instead, it was an old, beige wall with fine texture. In the corner stood a slightly worn dark brown chest of drawers, on which sat a potted green ivy with vines hanging down, lush and green.

“Wood,” the skinny monkey said with a hint of doubt, “Where are you? This doesn’t look like a dormitory. The walls of the room you rented aren’t this color.”

Su Mu moved the phone further away so that the camera could capture more of the living room, the warm yellow ceiling light, and the coffee table covered with an old-fashioned crocheted tablecloth: "It's in my house."

"You went back to your hometown? When did you go back? Why didn't you tell me! Oh right, let's get down to business. Just now, just now! Did Young Master Jiang share something in the group? My god, my eyes almost popped out when I saw it! What was it? Online classes for new parents? He's moving too fast! The campus heartthrob Jiang is secretly married and has a child. If this gets out, the forums will explode, and it'll be the headline for three days straight!"

He speaks like a machine gun; before the last syllable of one sentence has even faded, the next sentence has already burst forth impatiently.

"Hey, Wood, do you think Young Master Jiang will invite us if he really gets married? How much should we give as a wedding gift? Two hundred? Five hundred? Would that be too stingy? But with Young Master Jiang's wealth, he probably wouldn't even care about our little bit. Hey, he's moving like a rocket, right? I bet five cents he already has a kid. I just wonder which will come first, the baby's one-month celebration or the wedding ceremony? Maybe they'll just combine them into one, a double celebration..."

Skinny Monkey's voice was so penetrating that it echoed in the quiet living room.

Just then, an arm reached out from behind Su Mu's shoulder and casually draped over the back of the sofa. Then, Jiang Ran's face also came into the edge of the video frame.

Just as Skinny Monkey was talking about the double happiness, his eyes darted to the side and he unexpectedly caught sight of the extra figure behind Su Mu.

Although only half of his face was visible, his eyebrows, eyes, and overall features were striking.

His remaining words were cut off as if by an invisible pair of scissors, as if he had seen a ghost.

"Young Master Jiang...?"

Jiang Ran then moved his face closer to the center of the screen, making himself fully visible. His expression was neutral, except for a slight raise of his eyebrows. He slowly and deliberately responded to the camera with a "Mm."

Then, he smirked and said, "Go on, weren't you talking so enthusiastically just now? What about secret marriage and full moon celebration? Keep going, I'm listening."

Skinny Monkey's face on the other side of the screen was a picture of utter disbelief: "Damn it! You blockhead! You're so unfair! Young Master Jiang was right next to you, why didn't you tell me? You've betrayed us."

Jiang Ran tapped her fingers lightly on the back of the sofa: "What betrayal? Su Mu has always been on my side. If I don't say anything, I won't hear any of your nonsense. I clicked the wrong button just now."

Skinny Monkey chuckled twice: "Hahaha, so it was a slip of the hand... I knew it! Young Master Jiang, how could that be? Um, my signal seems a bit weak. Woody, Young Master Jiang, I'll hang up now. Talk to you later, talk to you later!"

Jiang Ran said, "You just let him talk nonsense in your ear for so long?"

Su Mu: "...That's not even a question, it's just nonsense."

After all, the child was indeed pregnant. Of all the wild speculations made by Skinny Monkey, at least this one point, by sheer chance, hit the nail on the head regarding the truth.

"Do you want to get married?" Jiang Ran suddenly asked.

Su Mu was clearly taken aback by his sudden shift to this topic. He paused for a moment, his eyelashes fluttering rapidly. "I hadn't thought about it."

That's the truth. It's true that he was entangled with Jiang Ran, and it's true that he unexpectedly became pregnant, but the word "marriage" was never truly and clearly included in his life plan. Especially with Jiang Ran.

Jiang Ran didn't show any disappointment or other emotion at his answer: "Then think about it now."

Just then, the phone screen that Su Mu had been holding lit up again and vibrated twice. It was a message from Skinny Monkey. Su Mu unlocked the screen and opened it.

Skinny Monkey: Wood, you and Young Master Jiang... something's not quite right.

Su Mu: What's wrong?

Skinny Monkey's reply came quickly, his words revealing a restless, inquisitive spirit: "Something's just not right. I can't quite put my finger on it, but ever since you came back from Jiangzhou, something's been off. I haven't figured it out yet, and the way you two are together now just feels weird."

Su Mu stared at the line of text, and finally, feeling guilty, slowly typed out a system-provided yellow bean emoji with cold sweat dripping down its face.

Skinny Monkey replied almost instantly: Anyway, it's just not right. My intuition has never been wrong!

Su Mu didn't reply. The puppy seemed to have woken up and was using its pink nose to push aside a corner of the old clothes covering it, revealing its fluffy little head and its wet black nose sniffing the air.

As Su Mu looked at it, the desire to touch and hug it welled up again, and his eyes softened.

Jiang Ran followed his gaze and looked at Su Mu's expectant expression.

“Come on, hug me.” Jiang Ran said matter-of-factly, “I’ve hugged that puppy before, so if you hug me, it’s like you’re hugging the dog from a distance.”

Su Mu was speechless at his logic. Looking at his face so close to hers, and those eyes that were looking at her with unusual seriousness even though he was saying nonsensical things, Su Mu felt her ears getting hot for no reason and hugged him.

Jiang Ran is quite like a puppy.

He had never thought about marriage. But now, Jiang Ran wanted him to think about it.

Also, Jiang Ran had indeed been staying in his hometown for quite a while. So long that the neighbors had started looking at him with curious eyes and asking questions. Su Mu was thinking that he should take Jiang Ran to visit all the relatives he needed to see, such as his uncles and aunts, to make an appearance and give them an explanation.

Then, it would be perfectly logical to bring the Buddha statue back to the city.

This plan cannot be told to Jiang Ran now. Otherwise, given this young master's impulsive and easily agitated nature, who knows what kind of trouble he might cause.

But deep down, Su Mu felt that Jiang Ran didn't need to waste her time here, in Phoenix Village, a place completely unfamiliar to him, with a slow pace and even a somewhat stagnant atmosphere.

He has his parents with him. There's really no need for Jiang Ran to stay by his side around the clock, like, well, like an overly dutiful bodyguard. Jiang Ran should go back to Jiangzhou; there he has his job, his familiar social circle, and things he needs to do. Those glamorous places are completely out of place here—the dusty streets and the damp smell of earth.

If it weren't for the unexpected baby in her belly, Su Mu probably wouldn't have chosen to return to Phoenix Village at this time.

In City B, that huge and bustling metropolis, he was like a boat adrift, pushed along by the surging crowds and information. He often felt weightless, unable to find solid ground. At that time, his mind was in turmoil, his heart was adrift, and he couldn't calm down to think about what he really wanted or where he should go.

According to his original plan, he would find a short-term, mentally taxing part-time job to ease the pressure, and then continue sending out resumes, going to interviews, and trying out one job after another. He would get back up from where he fell.

This is his belief since childhood, stubborn and even a bit clumsy, but it gives him a sense of grounded control.

Meng Lingxuan invited him to dinner at a newly opened private restaurant in town, owned by his former fellow apprentice.

Meng Lingxuan may seem carefree, but he is actually quite meticulous. He is especially skilled in kitchen matters and even studied to be a chef for several years in his early years, but he stopped doing so to take care of his family.

He personally cooked several of the main dishes at the meal. The sweet and sour pork ribs were fried until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a thick and glossy sauce. The fried fish was beautifully knifed and fluffy, then drizzled with a sweet and sour tomato sauce. Even the stir-fried vegetables had a touch of sugar added to enhance their flavor.

The table was filled with several sweet dishes that Su Mu preferred.

The private rooms at the small restaurant in town weren't very big. Meng Lingxuan's family had arrived early and were sitting around a round table talking. Jiaojiao, wearing a pink dress, sat obediently next to her mother.

As soon as she saw Su Mu and Jiang Ran come in, the little girl's eyes lit up. She slid off the chair and ran over, calling out to her brother.

Jiang Ran doesn't usually interact with such young children, but when a delicate little girl called him in such a soft voice, softer than usual, he and Su Mu discussed it and felt that they would probably have a daughter.

Su Mu didn't even know where his confidence came from.

Knowing that Meng Lingxuan was hosting a dinner party today, Jiang Ran made preparations in advance. He carried a cardboard box with exquisite cartoon patterns and tied it with a pretty ribbon bow.

"It's for Jiaojiao," he said.

Jiaojiao's mother quickly stood up, saying, "Oh dear, you brought so much for dinner, you're too kind," as she accepted the gift. She thought it was just an ordinary, slightly larger doll set; similar ones were sold in the town's toy stores for a few dozen or a hundred yuan.

The box was quite heavy, and the packaging was exceptionally exquisite. She thought to herself, "Xiao Jiang is really particular; even the packaging for a toy he buys is so high-class."

During the meal, everyone ate, drank, and chatted, while the large box sat on a chair in the corner of the private room. Jiaojiao would occasionally glance at it, her eyes filled with curiosity and anticipation. After more than half the meal had been eaten, and the adults were enjoying their drinks, Jiaojiao finally couldn't resist any longer. She tugged at her mother's sleeve and whispered that she wanted to open it and take a look.

Jiaojiao's mother couldn't refuse her daughter, so she smiled, took the box, placed it on the ground, and helped her untie the intricate ribbons. Inside the box, transparent plastic packaging protected a doll dressed in a gorgeous court dress, its makeup so exquisite it looked lifelike, with each strand of hair clearly defined.

Jiaojiao exclaimed "Wow!" with her mouth wide open and her eyes wide open, instantly captivated.

Jiao Jiao's mother probably just thought it was a toy, but Su Mu knew that one of the characters seemed to be a very popular collaboration item.

It seems like one of them costs several thousand.

Jiaojiao's mother said, "Xiao Jiang, this doll must cost several hundred yuan."

Jiang Ran: "Hmm, more or less, does Jiaojiao like it?"

Jiaojiao was immersed in the immense joy of her new toy. Without even looking up, she answered crisply, her voice full of undisguised happiness: "I love it! Thank you, Brother Jiang! The doll is so beautiful!"

Jiang Ran: "It's okay, as long as she's happy. I love my daughter."

Jiaojiao's mother said, "Then you can have another one later. With your genes, your daughter will definitely be very beautiful."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ran looked at Su Mu, who was too embarrassed to meet his gaze and instead picked up the hot water and took a sip.

Meng Lingxuan also opened a bottle of wine, a locally brewed rice wine, which was quite potent. As soon as the bottle was brought out, Jiang Ran naturally reached out and took it, saying that Su Mu couldn't drink it, so he would drink it.

Su Mu glanced at him and tacitly agreed; he really couldn't drink.

Meng Lingxuan didn't force him.

So the entire evening was spent drinking and toasting, mostly between Meng Lingxuan and Jiang Ran. Meng Lingxuan kept urging her on, "Little Jiang, come on, let's have another one!" "That's enough! Cheers!"

After finishing her meal, Meng Lingxuan's daughter, Jiaojiao, started rubbing her eyes, her little head drooping slightly. Seeing this, Jiaojiao's mother smiled and got up, saying, "You two can drink and chat as you please. I'll take Jiaojiao to the car to sleep."

She quickly packed her child's schoolbag, said goodbye to everyone, and then left with her drowsy daughter in her arms.

After several rounds of drinks, most of the dishes had gone cold.

Meng Lingxuan was clearly drunk; his face was flushed, his neck was thick, his speech was becoming slurred, and his eyes were somewhat glazed.

In contrast, Jiang Ran, though his cheeks were also flushed, had relatively clear eyes, and his fingers holding the wine glass were steady. He told Su Mu that he had been socializing a lot in the past two years, and his alcohol tolerance had been something he had worked hard to develop.

Meng Lingxuan suddenly grabbed Su Mu's shoulder with a rather strong grip. He turned his head, staring intently at Su Mu, his eyes slightly red, and his voice muffled, filled with an indescribable grievance and bitterness: "Mu Mu, I feel... I'm not your best brother anymore."

Su Mu: "Huh? Why would you think that?"

He gets emotional easily when he drinks too much, and once he starts talking, he can't stop. So, tonight's drinking session was all about him holding back his jealousy of Jiang Ran.

“We grew up together, like we were wearing the same pair of diapers,” Meng Lingxuan counted on his fingers. “We didn’t skip school together, but you helped me fool my parents. We didn’t fight together, but you helped me apply medicine. We’d take the blame for each other when we got into trouble… When I got married, you were my best man, running around doing all the chores, even more tired than me. You even said that when you get married, whether I get married or not, I have to be your best man, or the wedding is off…”

As he spoke, his eyes reddened further, and his trembling finger rose, reaching over Su Mu's shoulder and pointing directly at Jiang Ran opposite him: "And now? When you get married, will he be your best man?"

Jiang Ran, who was being pointed at, was about to remove Meng Lingxuan's hand from Su Mu's shoulder. Upon hearing this, he blinked, his eyes, made deeper and brighter than usual by the alcohol. He looked at Meng Lingxuan, then at Su Mu, who was being held by Meng Lingxuan and looked somewhat helpless.

“Brother Meng,” he said, “I’m not going to be a best man.”

Meng Lingxuan: "Ah, then what are you going to be?"

"Of course I'll be the groom."

After he finished speaking, there was a moment of deathly silence in the room.

Meng Lingxuan seemed stunned by his words, his mouth agape, his mind blank, unable to process what he was saying for a long time. He just stared blankly at Jiang Ran, then turned to look at Su Mu.

Su Mu: "…………"

Su Mu sat in the middle, looking at Jiang Ran's incredibly bright eyes, and feeling Meng Lingxuan's heavy, alcohol-smelling arm on his shoulder. For a moment, he felt a dull ache in his temples.

These two people are a mix of emotions: one is prone to bringing up old grievances, and the other is someone who never fails to make a shocking statement.

Well, it seems everyone's had quite a bit to drink tonight.

-

A note from the author:

Young Master Jiang: I'm really eager to get married.