Chapter 15

Late at night, He Jin leaned on the balcony railing, looking at the dim lights in the distance. The cigarette in his hand had burned out. He rubbed his fingers and extinguished the spark. He felt pain at his fingertips, and then he felt that this was real.

The phone next to him never turned off, and was always on the chat interface with Jiang Xu. He poked the kitten spinning on the stool, and the emoticon package enlarged. He suddenly chuckled.

Everything now is his own choice, whether it is staying in No. 3 Middle School or Jiang Xu. Since he has made the choice, it is a determined thing and there is nothing to deliberately hide.

——

The next day.

Jiang Xu got up early, changed her clothes and opened the curtains, but her good mood was immediately dashed.

I didn't know whether to blame the weather or the weather forecast. It clearly reported yesterday that today would be cloudy, so why did it rain, and it was a downpour.

Jiang Xu sat cross-legged on the windowsill, watching the rain falling outside. He picked up the phone on the table beside him and sent a message to He Jin: [It's raining]

【Frustrated CatJPG】

The reply came quickly: [Yes.]

Before Jiang Xu could think of her next response, Yu Jin knocked on the door, then pushed it open and came in. He immediately saw his daughter's lonely figure on the windowsill and asked, "What's wrong, Xuxu? Why are you up so early today?"

Jiang Xu turned around, put down his phone, and said, "Nothing, isn't it usually around this time?"

Yu Jin glanced at her suspiciously, but didn't ask, "Then let's go downstairs for breakfast."

Halfway through the meal, Jiang Xu suddenly remembered that he hadn't replied to a WeChat message yet. He stuffed a fried dumpling into his mouth, put down his bowl and chopsticks, and mumbled, "I'm full."

Before Yu Jin could say anything, he looked at her back as she went upstairs, smiled and sighed: "This child is still impatient."

Not knowing what she was thinking about, Yu Jinxiao moved her chair closer to Jiang Yuanshan, "Old Jiang, do you think our girl is heartbroken? She got up so early this morning and sat on the windowsill. She looked a little melancholy."

"Nonsense." Jiang Yuanshan put down the documents in his hand and frowned. "Who would dare? Our girl is so outstanding, which boy would dare to make her sad?"

"Why are you so fierce?" Yu Jin didn't know whether he had heard what he said. He snorted and stopped leaning on Jiang Yuanshan.

Jiang Yuanshan coughed guiltily, smoothed Yu Jin's waist-length hair, and said in a soft voice, "I was wrong, wife."

This ancestor is even harder to worship than those two little ancestors.

Little Jiang You sat opposite, holding a cup of milk, lowering his head and shaking his short legs. There was a line of words on his face: I am the background board, you guys continue.

Jiang Xu picked up the phone and unlocked it. There were two messages. One of them was from fifteen minutes ago: [Wait for me at home.]

Another message showed just now: [Saw him leaving the house.]

Jiang Xu sent an OK emoji in reply, put his phone in his pocket, and hurried downstairs. "Mom and Dad, I'm going out. I won't be back for lunch. I'll call you tonight."

Yu Jin winked at Jiang Yuanshan and replied, "Okay, baby, be careful on the road. Do you have enough money? If not, ask your dad to transfer some to you."

Jiang Xu, wearing shoes, quickly responded, "Don't worry."

The balance can't hold any more.

Little Jiang You lay on the sofa and looked at her with an expression that said "I see through you". He was abnormally silent. Yu Jin noticed her son's reaction and confirmed her guess.

This girl is finding a boyfriend behind my back.

As soon as she left the yard, Jiang Xu saw He Jin standing in the rain with an umbrella. She waved at him, and without holding the umbrella, she rushed out and bumped into his arms.

He Jin gently brushed away the raindrops on the girl's head, "No umbrella?"

"Don't you have it?" Jiang Xu rubbed against his arms.

Rainy days are also great, you can stick to your friends for no reason.

He Jin took her hand and walked to a car, opened the door, and held the roof for her, "Get in."

Jiang Xu got into the car quickly and looked at the gloomy sky outside the windshield. Humph, there was nothing he could do. He could still have fun even if it rained.

After the car started, Jiang Xu's mind started to freeze. She turned her head stiffly to look at He Jin who was in the driver's seat, and then glanced at the car logo on the steering wheel. Thinking of the quick glance before getting in the car, it was an Audi A6. Was it an act?

I originally thought it was a taxi, but that wasn't right, she was sitting in the passenger seat.

Jiang Xu was speechless for a moment, his mind blank, not knowing where to start. After a long while, he finally uttered, "Brother Jin, is this the car you bought?"

Your reaction is so slow, no wonder you didn’t react when I got in the car just now.

He Jin laughed. Seeing his reaction, he suddenly wanted to tease her, "No, I stole it from home."

No? At home? What's going on?

Isn't he a poor student who relies on scholarships to make ends meet? Isn't he fighting in the underworld to support his family?

Jiang Xu's brain froze, and he mumbled, "You haven't been discovered, have you?"

How could this girl's train of thought be so strange? He Jin said seriously, "No, I'm going back tonight. Where do you want to go?"

Jiang Xu nodded blankly: "Go... I'll follow you."

As the car drove out of the residential complex, Jiang Xu subconsciously grabbed the seatbelt in front of him, looking at the shaking wipers, a line of words kept popping up in his mind: You are on this boat yourself, you chose the captain yourself, no matter where the boat comes from or where it is going, just save your life first.

Jiang Xu's heart was in his throat, he stared straight ahead, his face pale.

He Jin looked at her reaction and laughed so hard that his chest was shaking. Jiang Xu looked at him blankly, with the words "save your life" almost printed on her face.

He explained conscientiously: "I took the test last year, not driving without a license."

Hearing this, Jiang Xu relaxed a little, nodded, and was stunned for a while, "Brother Jin, are you an adult?"

He Jin replied: "Yes, I went to high school twice."

"..." After a while, Jiang Xu remembered to ask why.

"I used to live in the countryside and attended high school there, but I didn't take the college entrance exam. After coming here, I just went back to high school again."

Jiang Xu listened in confusion. The amount of information seemed a bit overwhelming, so he started counting the days on his fingers.

"That's two years older than me." The girl suddenly said, which made He Jin react for a while.

"Yeah." He Jin was not surprised by the girl's strange attention and responded to her with a smile.

Arriving at the parking lot of Liyue Plaza, Jiang Xu thought for a long time, trying to keep his tone normal and asked, "Then... was this car really stolen from home?" Is he a hidden rich man?

He Jin just parked the car and decided not to lie to her. "No, the car is mine. I have a studio, which is enough to support you."

Jiang Xu received such a huge amount of information in just one morning. She was confused after getting off the car. She quietly held He Jin's hand and silently sorted out all the information.

I am not short of money and I am not a poor student.

If I were two years older, I would be 19 this year.

Have a driver's license and a car.

There is a studio.

Jiang Xu hooked her arm around He Jin's neck and leaned close to his ear, "Am I the only one who knows these little secrets?"

"Song Li, I know a little." It can be said that Song Li knew a little, but he never said that the studio was his.

Jiang Xu asked, "Well...that's it?"

He Jin nodded, "Yeah."

"Then I will definitely help you keep these secrets!" Jiang Xu smiled, and then he realized that the two of them were very close, and this angle was suitable for kissing.

"I believe you." He Jin took advantage of the girl's moment to move away, leaned forward, pressed his forehead against hers, and spoke softly, within earshot.

The eyes of people passing by stayed on the two of them for a moment, and Jiang Xu's face became hot, all the way to his ears.

He Jin curled his lips, feeling very happy. "What do you want to do?"

Jiang Xu suddenly realized, "Song Li knows?"

He Jin: "Know a little bit, what?"

"He lied to me before, saying you were...poor, so I..." Jiang Xu said, then suddenly trailed off, "No, you know what he said, right?"

He Jin raised his eyebrows, did not deny it, and nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me? I've been telling you for so long that I'll support you. Are you laughing at me?" Jiang Xu frowned slightly. It was so embarrassing. What was the difference between those words and destroying her reputation?

He Jin thought Jiang Xu was angry with him and pinched her face. "No, at that time I was just wondering, how could you fall in love with me when I have nothing."

Jiang Xu was even more dissatisfied now. How could he deny her like that? Her tone was so serious that she herself didn't even notice it: "He Jin, you are the best and you deserve the best."

He Jin stared at her intently, her emotions fully revealed in front of him: "Yes, you deserve the best." Jiang Xu, I can give you everything you want in the future.

He shook her hand affectionately: "Don't be angry? I'll tell you slowly later."

Jiang Xu was so easy to coax. With just one word from He Jin, all her anger disappeared. "Well, if you have a secret to tell others in the future, tell me first."

He Jin rubbed Jiang Xu's head, responded to her eager gaze, and said with a smile, "Okay."

——

We said we were going to eat, but as soon as we got to the basement and got off the elevator, we saw a huge claw machine shop with pink machines and colorful lights. There were a lot of people inside, and cheers could be heard constantly. Some people were pushing a cart full of dolls.

Maybe girls are naturally not resistant to these things. Jiang Xu couldn't walk anymore when she passed by, so she pulled He Jin over to exchange the coins.

Jiang Xu, holding a basket of game coins, pushed a cart with great dignity and said confidently, "Brother Jin, whichever one you want, I'll grab it for you."

He Jin was pushing the cart from behind. Seeing that she was ready to do something big, he didn't spoil her fun and pointed to a doll that looked easier to catch.

Jiang Xu understood, grabbed a handful of game coins, put them into the game machine, held his breath and moved his claws, found the angle and slapped hard, and the claws fell steadily, grabbing nothing.

“…”

"Mistake, try again."

The second time, the doll was caught, but the claws loosened in mid-air before it started to move, and the doll was bounced further away from the hole.

Jiang Xu has always been the type of person who insists on accomplishing something even if it's impossible. Today, she insisted on catching this thing back, even though it was bounced to the side and leaned against the wall.

On the eighth time, the culprit was still not caught. The staff on the side could not stand it anymore and wanted to say something but stopped themselves many times. Since the last complaint, the machine has been adjusted. Isn't it true that one will be caught after eight times?

Jiang Xu kept catching them, and He Jin didn't say anything, nor did he show any intention of helping. Jiang Xu suddenly remembered that when Cheng Yuan and the others came here to catch them, they had some skills, but she didn't pay much attention.

Relying on the little memory in her mind, Jiang Xu moved her clawed hand little by little, aimed at the doll's butt, and grabbed it. She failed to catch it, and half of its head was already at the entrance of the hole. She excitedly patted the glass door and continued to put in coins.

The second time, the claws grabbed the head and the doll fell down. In the process, it hooked the hanging rope on the head of the doll next to it and also fell down.

Jiang Xu leaned against the door and watched the two of them fall. He looked up at He Jin, who was leaning against the machine, his eyes filled with joy. "Brother Jin!! Am I awesome?!"

He Jin affirmed: "Amazing."

Jiang Xu's tail was almost up in the air: "Brother Jin, which one do you want?"

He Jin scanned around and saw a kitten with an angry emoji on its head. It looked very similar. "This one."

…

After one round, Jiang Xu got a claw machine from almost every claw machine. Looking at the full cart, he was very satisfied. He was even prouder than solving a math or physics problem. He took the small doll to exchange for a big one.

The staff saw the cart of dolls they were pushing and was speechless again. Well, they just said that the claws cannot be adjusted so tightly.