Chapter 31 The True Rival

Aside from their time at the beach, Xia Li had never seen Ji Ling and Sheng Minyang interact. She frowned slightly, her lips parted briefly before closing again, her gaze shifting between the two before she cautiously asked, "You two..."

He paused, thinking for a moment before asking, "Are we very familiar?"

Ji Ling squeezed her palm with his strong knuckles, wrinkled his nose, and answered crisply, "Where did you figure that out?"

Xia Li's eyes were shining, and she had been staring at him without blinking. But after hearing his reply, she lowered her eyes quietly, bit her lip, and didn't say anything more, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Sheng Minyang frowned, unable to bear it any longer, and questioned Ji Ling, "Why are you bullying her?"

"How did I bully her?" Ji Ling glanced at Sheng Minyang out of the corner of his eye, his tone full of impatience.

Seeing this, Xia Li looked up and explained softly, "He didn't bully me."

But it's not convincing at all.

Sheng Minyang sighed, then suddenly leaned closer, his tone tense and unyielding: "He was so mean to you just now? Doesn't that count as bullying you?"

Xia Li lowered her eyes and shook her head. Just as she stopped, she heard Ji Ling snort and say disdainfully, "Wasn't your tone fierce? Why were you so close to her?"

Sheng Minyang looked up, about to retort, but realized that his behavior was indeed somewhat inappropriate, so he swallowed his words and distanced himself.

Xia Li looked up at him, her eyes filled with apology, but unexpectedly, the next second Ji Ling suddenly tightened his grip on her hand and pulled her forward. She stumbled, but fortunately Ji Ling caught her waist again.

Then Ji Ling turned around and said to Sheng Minyang in an icy tone, "She has me now, so there's no need for Mr. Sheng to interfere."

As soon as she finished speaking, Xia Li blushed and became even more embarrassed. She sighed helplessly, trying to ease the tension, but Sheng Minyang was not to be outdone. He said, "Can't you even show concern for your friend?"

Ji Ling's eyes were full of wariness: "Whether you are a friend or not, whether you have other intentions, you know in your heart."

Then Ji Linghao took her away without any politeness.

We left the beach and returned indoors.

She glanced at Ji Ling's expression out of the corner of her eye and casually asked, "What did you mean by your last sentence?"

Ji Ling was in a bad mood, and when she heard her mention Sheng Minyang, she even seemed annoyed. She said coldly, "What else could it be? Can't you see it? Can't you feel it?"

Xia Li lowered her eyes. She knew that Sheng Minyang was very good to her, but for her, it only stayed at the level of "good"—it was his thoughtfulness and care for his friend and sister.

She never had any other thoughts, whether it was about her feelings for Sheng Minyang or Sheng Minyang's feelings for her.

She shook her head, then nodded in a daze, replying, "Now I know."

Seeing that Ji Ling did not reply, she scratched his palm and whispered, "Are you angry?"

Ji Ling stared at her, his anger going beyond mere rage; he was furious that Xia Li's mind was so simple.

Unable to perceive any extraneous emotions, she stopped arguing and simply hummed, "Hmm."

Xia Li was stunned for a moment. If it were any other time, the person in front of her would probably ask questions, such as "Do you think I'm angry?" or "How can you tell that I'm angry?" But this time, he was no longer being hypocritical.

She asked cautiously, "Are you alright?"

Ji Ling turned her head and lowered her eyes, replying, "What's wrong with me?"

The question seemed to have two layers of meaning, and Xia Li couldn't help but smile, the tense atmosphere from before completely dissipating.

She replied, "Yes, you're wonderful in every way."

As she spoke, she quietly stood on her tiptoes, using the height to lean forward slightly. Her pale, slightly cool lips lightly touched the corner of his lips, like a dragonfly skimming the water, almost weightless, before quickly moving away.

After she mustered up her courage and finished doing all this, she secretly observed Ji Ling's expression. She saw that Ji Ling turned his head away and his earlobes turned slightly red.

The lingering warmth of the sun and the crispness of the sea breeze seemed to still exist. They never said they liked each other, but their words were filled with unspoken affection.

Because of his inability to express himself, his love became somewhat distorted.

A gentle kiss is more powerful than passionate, lingering affection.

The final wedding banquet was held at night on an open-air rooftop.

The lighting was dim, and the empty space was empty except for a circle of drinks around the perimeter. In the center, Jiang Xue was surrounded by a group of people chatting.

Xia Li was no exception. When she turned around, she happened to see Wang Shu eating dessert alone not far away, so she took Ji Ling and walked in the direction of Wang Shu.

She patted Wang Shu on the shoulder. Wang Shu turned around, her eyes wide with shock, cream still smeared on her face.

"Sister Xia Li!" she suddenly called out, then abruptly composed herself, shifting her gaze to Xia Li's side, and continued, "Brother-in-law is here too..."

Xia Li responded and prepared to take a wet wipe to wipe the cream off her lips, but Wang Shu suddenly dodged away, took the hand that Xia Li was extending, and stammered, "Sister Xia Li... I can do it myself."

Wang Shu's gaze trembled, and Xia Li followed her gaze, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Ji Ling was beside him, and there was no one else around. Why was Wang Shu acting like this all of a sudden?

Before she could think any further, Wang Shu finished wiping her face and exclaimed, "You guys are actually here! I didn't see you during the day, I thought you weren't coming."

Xia Li smiled in response, and after a moment Ji Ling asked Wang Shu, "Where's Han Rui? Why isn't he with you?"

Before Wang Shu could react, he honestly pointed to the middle of the venue: "Over there, liven up the atmosphere next to Jiang Xue."

Xia Li looked towards the center, where several grown men were gathered together, seemingly discussing something. She then looked back, frowning as she asked Ji Ling, "Why is Han Rui with her?"

Xia Li inexplicably felt that her little cabbage had been taken by a pig, and the answer was as she expected. Ji Ling replied, "Han Rui is pursuing her."

Wang Shu coughed twice, his face turning red from the choking: "No! Absolutely not! We're just friends."

But no matter how Wang Shu explained it, it all seemed like an attempt to cover up the truth.

At this moment, Han Rui suddenly came over, sweat beading on his forehead. Seeing Ji Ling there, he immediately put his arm around Ji Ling's shoulder and said breathlessly, "Oh ho, it's perfect that you're here. Come on, come on, let's go over together."

Ji Ling was puzzled, frowning with some resistance, but she didn't loosen her grip on Xia Li's hand at all: "What?"

Han Rui explained, "They're playing a game over there. You're in good shape, come with me."

Ji Ling remained silent and did not agree.

Han Rui noticed Xia Li's hand clasped together, glanced at him several times, and teased, "Don't worry, your wife won't get lost."

Xia Li's ears turned bright red instantly. She was startled by Han Rui's sudden address and was not used to it for a moment, so she loosened her grip and said to Ji Ling, "Go."

Both men left, leaving only her and Wang Shu. They walked to the nearby railing and chatted idly.

Wang Shu patted her face and shook her head: "I still can't believe that Ji Ling is actually my brother-in-law."

Seeing this, Xia Li smiled slightly and teased, "Isn't Han Rui also pursuing you?"

Wang Shu immediately denied it: "Friends! Friends! Friends! Just friends!"

Xia Li followed her words and said softly with a smile, "Okay, okay, friend."

At this moment, Wang Shu leaned closer, looking mysterious, blinked, and raised an eyebrow.

Xia Li asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

Wang Shu coughed twice, covering her mouth: "Ahem, Sister Xia Li, can I ask you something?"

Xia Li observed her actions, his eyes filled with confusion: "What is it?"

Wang Shu said, "It's your business."

Xia Li shook her head and refused, "I don't know."

As soon as she finished speaking, Wang Shu suddenly stood up. Xia Li was startled by her sudden movement and leaned back involuntarily.

Wang Shu's eyes were exceptionally firm, and her tone was forceful: "You and your brother-in-law are too alike. If you don't want to answer something, just refuse it first, no matter what."

Xia Li frowned, recalling that Jiang Xue had said something similar, and corrected Wang Shu: "Three times seven is twenty-one."

Wang Shu waved her hand, showing no embarrassment at her slip of the tongue, but rather excitement. She leaned back against the railing, standing shoulder to shoulder with Xia Li, and asked, "Sister Xia Li, have you ever had a crush on someone?"

Xia Li was stumped by her question, and no one could be found in her mind, so she honestly answered, "No."

Wang Shu turned his head and caught a glimpse of Xia Li's perfect profile, as if it had been meticulously painted by a painter. He thought to himself that Xia Li was so beautiful that she probably didn't have to suffer the pain of unrequited love, so he asked again, "Do you have someone you like?"

Xia Li's understanding of liking someone was very vague, so vague that it was just a matter of finding the right balance. But at this moment, she seemed to have a different perspective and feeling. Her hand, gripping the railing, felt as if it were being enveloped by a familiar warmth, and a comforting fragrance wafted from the tip of her nose.

But she still couldn't figure out exactly what it was.

She paused, then replied to Wang Shu somewhat uncertainly, "I don't think so..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Shu exclaimed, "Oh? Really? I thought you'd had many relationships."

Xia Li frowned and smiled, "Why would you have such a thought?"

Wang Shu replied, "Because you are very gentle."

She looked up and continued, "Besides, before you and your brother-in-law got married, I always thought you would like a mature and stable man, or a sunny and cheerful boy."

Xia Li was puzzled. None of the types Wang Shu listed had anything to do with Ji Ling. She asked, perplexed, "Why do you say that?"

Wang Shu looked down at her face and jokingly replied, "Because you're gentle." Then, after thinking for a moment, he explained seriously, "Sometimes I feel that you have an avoidant personality in relationships, um... how should I put it?"

Wang Shu kept thinking of what to say, and Xia Li didn't interrupt her, but listened quietly to her story in the evening breeze.

"Oh, let's look at it from another angle. Generally speaking, in relationships, it seems that complementary personalities are more likely to go the distance."

When personalities are too similar, especially when negative emotions overlap, it is easy to clash head-on. Also, similar ways of thinking and lifestyles make it difficult to bring new experiences.

Xia Li didn't think she and Ji Ling were that similar in personality; they were two completely different people. But everyone said they were similar, especially in terms of speech. She couldn't help but start to have doubts, as if what others said was true, such as the misunderstandings between them that were never fully explained.

Wang Shu's voice continued to come through, exceptionally clear even in the noisy environment, each sentence powerful and resonant.

"Xia Li, I always feel that you need a stable, patient, and guiding lover to love you. He should be much older than you, know more about relationships, and be very patient so that he can steadily support you. Or, it could be a boy much younger than you who is very enthusiastic and will enter your world without any warning, giving you all his love."

Wang Shu's words were incredibly clear, each sentence stripped of the surrounding noise, reaching Xia Li's ears and also precisely reaching Ji Ling, who was standing not far away.