Chapter 81 Suspension Bridge Effect.

A coal stove was burning in the room, with an iron mesh covering it, where several oranges and chestnuts were roasting.

Jingge was distracted and pricked his finger three times with the needle.

Wang Weiran clicked his tongue and said, "If you can't learn it, then don't learn it."

Snow was falling from the roof with a loud crackling sound. The landlady gave a few instructions and then went out to shovel the snow with a broom.

Jingge put down the embroidery hoop and suddenly asked, "Do you know about the suspension bridge effect?"

Wang Weiran: "You're starting to doubt who you like?"

"......"

“Oh,” Wang Weiran suddenly realized, “the only one who could be considered to have met on the suspension bridge is your uncle.”

Jing Ge said expressionlessly, "From now on, you'll be all alone in your own world."

Wang Weiran was overjoyed: "Falling in love with a man like your uncle is as easy as eating and drinking. Before, when you were engaged, I didn't dare to play matchmaker, but now I see you as a normal person, okay?"

“I used to like it too,” Ke Jingge said, distressed, “but it’s different this time.”

Upon closer examination, it turns out that what she felt before was a sense of goodwill and intimacy towards someone she considered a close friend. During her turbulent times, Li Mushi was the only support and reliance that gave her peace of mind.

But at some point, her feelings seemed to undergo a subtle, gradual chemical change.

Wang Weiran then put down her embroidery hoop and said, "Go on."

Jing Ge carefully selected an example: "Zhang Siming brought me chicken soup, but he didn't help me refuse it, so I got angry."

“Yes,” Wang Weiran nodded, “You think he has no possessiveness towards you, and since you like him, you naturally hope that he likes you back.”

"..." Jing Ge choked, and it took him a while to catch his breath. "Don't be so blunt."

Wang Weiran slapped his mouth: "Keep going, keep going."

Jingge: "I looked at his hands."

"Um."

“Last winter vacation, he took me to Antarctica,” Jing Ge said. “A tour guide accompanied me, and the calluses on her hands were from holding a gun for a long time.”

"Um."

“My uncle also has calluses on his hands, but they are not as obvious as those of that lady. I judge that the tour guide was not a stranger, but probably one of his people.”

"Um."

“There’s one more thing,” Jingge pondered, “He keeps his rest and work very separate, but he was texting the whole time while we were eating at Haidilao that day.”

"Um."

"I suspect that he arranged that Antarctic trip for me at the last minute, because I didn't want to go back to Haishi for the Chinese New Year."

"Um."

"...If you keep saying 'yes,' you'll be all alone on Earth."

Wang Weiran laughed so hard: "What do you want to do with all this evidence?"

Jing Ge pursed his lips, and his earlobes suddenly turned red.

“You can’t judge whether your feelings for him are due to the suspension bridge effect,” Wang Weiran said slowly, “nor can you judge whether his care for you is a matter of responsibility?”

Jing Ge pursed his lips, his dark eyes shining, and nodded at her.

“He is a very responsible person,” Jingge whispered, “and he has a strong sense of family. Because of the engagement, he considers me as family. I can’t be sure about myself, nor can I be sure about him.”

She didn't have the ability to figure out Li Mushi's thoughts. That man was meticulous in his work and unfathomable in his mind. Even if some things in the past were specially tailored for her, they could be summed up with the word "care".

Because of his strong family values, Jingge didn't dare to make any further attempts to probe.

I fear that spilled water cannot be gathered up again.

Wang Weiran rested his elbows on his legs and considered for a moment: "He wasn't sure of your location or safety, so he put everything aside in his busy schedule and called a helicopter to come find you personally. You may be used to his 'care' and therefore didn't notice. Do you want to know my opinion as an outsider?"

Jing Ge nodded.

Wang Weiran summed it up with two words: "reckless".

"......"

“Your uncle has such a steady and unwavering personality,” Wang Weiran said. “The word ‘reckless’ is too abrupt to describe him. Some people express their emotions very intensely, while others don’t show any change. But when he does something that goes against his usual behavior, it proves that he has lost control.”

At this point, Wang Weiran patted her on the shoulder and said, "You should first make sure about yourself."

Jingge's heart pounded faster at her speculation: "And then what?"

Wang Weiran: "Go!"

“…” Jing Ge dared not. “I just tried it out lightly, and he said he supported my free will. He can help me find out whoever I like.”

Wang Weiran: "Yes, I can't let you suffer, even if it means suffering myself."

Jing Ge: "".

Is this another way of interpreting it?

She's acting like she's head over heels in love.

Jingge was skeptical.

After letting her flushed face cool for a few seconds, Wang Weiran slowly said, "If you're worried about the suspension bridge effect, go back to Haishi and experience it again. First, make sure you're sure of yourself. If he can break his principles for you once, he'll do it a second time, a third time..."

Jingge interrupted her: "He won't even let me change how I address him."

“Who cares about him?” Wang Weiran gave in. “If you like him, you have to change your mindset and treat him like a man, not like an elder, and listen to everything he says?”

Jing Ge remained silent.

That doesn't mean she'll just listen to whatever he says.

Wang Weiran: "What can he do if you just don't listen?"

Jing Ge said weakly, "Isn't this... instinct?"

Rules ingrained in one's bones since childhood cannot be changed overnight.

Wang Weiran shook his leg, stared at her, and burst out laughing:

"The reason they support your free will might be because they've realized you don't have romantic feelings for him and don't want to force you. Only children listen to their elders. If you don't understand, think about when you were with your ex. Did you always obey him? You grew up with your ex under his watchful eye. Whether you liked him or not, and what kind of liking it was, he probably knows better than you do. You need to give him a signal that your feelings have shifted from liking your brother-in-law to liking a man."

Jing Ge: "What signal?"

"You're so stupid," Wang Weiran said irritably. "Of course it's a signal that you're disobedient!"

"..." Time passed slowly, the snow melted into water, dripping and dripping. Jing Ge sighed, "I allow you to share a world with me."

Wang Weiran was about to prick her with a needle.

Jingge laughed as he dodged, "I didn't understand those few needles just now, can you teach me?"

Wang Weiran already knew how to do this, but when he taught her, he deliberately modified a few steps so that she could sew it into a heart-shaped sachet.

The sachet contained dried herbs, and Jingge had stuffed in a few sprigs of winter plum blossoms; the clean fragrance carried a chilling undertone.

Jingge showed the sachet to Li Mushi.

The man lifted his eyelids slightly: "Very beautiful peaches."

"..." Jing Ge's lips trembled, unable to utter the words, "This isn't a peach, it's a heart, it's a heart!!"

"This is for you."

Li Mushi lowered his eyelashes: "Keep it for yourself to play with."

Jing Ge held out his hand: "Here, take this."

Li Mushi did not answer.

The afternoon sun was hazy, and the air was slightly distorted.

The two seemed to be at an impasse, one insisting on giving it to the customer, while the other refused.

Jing Ge looked into the man's narrow, cold eyes: "Li Mushi..."

The man's sharp brows furrowed instantly, and an oppressive aura enveloped her without warning.

Jing Ge swallowed hard and handed the sachet to him: "Li..."

Before she could finish shouting, the man suddenly flicked her forehead with his finger.

It's crunchy.

Show no mercy.

Jingge subconsciously closed his eyes, and the sachet he was holding seemed to be pulled away by some force, leaving a trace of fragrance on his fingertips.

Jingge opened his eyes.

The sachet had already been placed on the table by Li Mushi, next to the watch he had taken off.

He accepted it.