Chapter 65 Didn't Ranran just say she wanted to eat me? ...

Chirp chirp, chirp chirp chirp, chirp chirp chirp, chirp chirp.

A gap was left in the curtains, and morning light streamed into the room through it.

Tang Ran was awakened by the chirping of birds outside the window and opened her eyes groggily.

When she saw Song Zhixu's face, she took a moment to realize that a friend had drunk too much and couldn't leave yesterday, so Song Zhixu had given up his room and slept in the same room as her.

They slept together several times, but either she would rush to get up, or Song Zhixu would already be up when she woke up.

This was the first time Tang Ran had the opportunity to see Song Zhixu's sleeping face so closely.

Song Zhixu lay flat on her back, her head turned to the side in her direction. Her long, dark hair was spread out, her eyelashes were curled, her nose was straight and delicate, and her breathing was soft and shallow. Her sleeping face was peaceful.

His gaze traced her profile down to her lips, finally settling on her two bright red lips.

Her facial features are clearly defined, with slightly upturned corners of her mouth and full, alluring lips.

It's somewhat delicious.

Tang Ran's throat tightened, and she looked up, quietly moving closer.

When her lips touched that sweet, soft touch, Tang Ran realized what she had done.

She was actually captivated by Song Zhixu's good looks and stole a kiss from him.

Just then, Song Zhixu's eyelashes trembled slightly, as if she were about to wake up.

Tang Ran suddenly felt a pang of panic, as if she had been caught doing something wrong, and quickly closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

The mattress next to her had slightly sagged, and just as Tang Ran noticed that Song Zhixu had turned over, Song Zhixu's hand had already wrapped around her waist.

Even though she didn't open her eyes, Tang Ran noticed Song Zhixu's gaze on her face.

Time passed second by second, and just when Tang Ran thought that Song Zhixu had seen through her feigned sleep, the light in her eyelids dimmed.

A soft breath approached, and an extremely tender kiss landed on her forehead.

Tang Ran's eyelashes trembled as she struggled between continuing to pretend to be asleep and taking the opportunity to wake up.

A slight rustling sound came from beside her, and Song Zhixu had already gotten up and gotten out of bed.

As the footsteps faded into the distance, Tang Ran quietly opened her eyes and saw Song Zhixu's back as he walked into the washroom.

Tang Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems Song Zhixu didn't realize she was pretending to be asleep.

He probably didn't realize he had secretly kissed her.

When Song Zhixu came out after washing up, Tang Ran was already leaning against the headboard scrolling through her phone as if nothing had happened. She looked up at Song Zhixu when she saw her come out.

She wore a light blue three-quarter sleeve knit top with an off-white long skirt, and a diamond comet brooch draped over her chest, matching the engagement necklace around her neck.

Casual yet elegant.

Song Zhixu placed the pajamas she was holding on the footstool by the bed. "Awake?"

She wore light makeup, her long hair was draped over her shoulders, one side was tucked behind her ear, and her porcelain-white earlobe was adorned with matching comet stud earrings.

After taking a closer look, Tang Ran's gaze involuntarily fell on her lips again.

The light brown lip gloss accentuates the lip line while making the lips appear fuller and more moisturized.

It looks even more tempting.

Seeing that Tang Ran was a little dazed, Song Zhixu sat down on the edge of the bed, tidied the stray hairs by her ear, and asked gently, "Still not awake? Do you want to sleep a little longer?"

The banquet ended very late last night, and the two of them didn't go to bed until after midnight.

Tang Ran snapped out of her daze, her ears burning.

She gave a fake yawn, not even looking at Song Zhixu, and deftly threw off the covers and got out of bed. "I'm not going to sleep anymore. I'll catch up on sleep when I get home tonight."

Tang Ran took out her change of clothes from her suitcase and went to the bathroom without looking back.

A smile bloomed on Song Zhixu's lips as her gaze followed the slightly flustered figure of someone until it was blocked by the colorful glass door of the bathroom.

Actually, she vaguely remembered when Tang Ran kissed her, but when she opened her eyes, he had already closed his eyes again and pretended to be asleep, feeling guilty.

Song Zhixu was pleased with Tang Ran's initiative to get close to her, so she naturally wouldn't expose her, lest someone get angry.

She stood up leisurely, her gaze lingering on the open suitcase for a moment, her smile deepening.

Inside the washroom.

Tang Ran only realized after taking off her pajamas that she had forgotten her underwear in her haste.

She sighed silently and put her pajamas back on.

As I opened the door again, I saw Song Zhixu smiling gently at the doorway.

"Little scatterbrain," Song Zhixu said with a light smile as he handed her the underwear bag.

Tang Ran blushed, grabbed the bag, and quickly closed the door.

After changing her clothes and putting on a full face of makeup, Tang Ran finally dawdled out of the bathroom.

She wore a white, fitted long dress and the same engagement jewelry as Song Zhixu.

Song Zhixu had already finished getting ready and was standing by the window making a phone call.

Judging from what she said, it seems to be about work-related matters.

Seeing Tang Ran come out, he smiled at her, continued talking on the phone, walked towards Tang Ran, and pulled her out of the room together.

I walked less than five meters outside when the door to the next room opened.

Miao Tiantian peeked out of the room and came right into Tang Ran's view.

She froze for a second, then quickly pulled her head back to close the door.

Tang Ran stepped forward, put her arms around her neck, and pulled her out.

Miao Tiantian reacted quickly this time, hooking the door shut as she was pulled out.

"You didn't say you were going to stay overnight yesterday?"

Tang Ran came down from the tower but didn't see Miao Tiantian, so she assumed that Miao Tiantian had left last night.

Miao Tiantian wore a V-neck long dress, and from Tang Ran's angle, one could vaguely see the spots below the collar.

Tang Ran: ...

They are all adults, and what these marks represent is self-evident.

As expected of Miao Tiantian, her car speed is much faster than hers.

"Don't be a pervert."

Miao Tiantian grabbed her collar and broke free from Tang Ran's grasp, looking like she had been bullied.

Tang Ran was speechless. The two of them had grown up together, and she saw Miao Tiantian as no different from seeing a boiled chicken.

"Don't try to distract me." She squinted at Miao Tiantian. "Is this what you mean by 'nothing happened'?"

Seeing how skillfully Miao Tiantian slipped out the door, Tang Ran instinctively felt that this was definitely not the first time the two of them had slept together.

Miao Tiantian waved her hand and quickly took two steps back. "I have something to do, so I'll go back to the company first. We'll talk later."

After she finished speaking, she slipped away down the stairs, and Tang Ran tried to grab her but couldn't.

After having breakfast and seeing off the last group of guests, Tang Ran and her companion set off back to Shengming Mansion.

When the housekeeper saw Tang Ran return, he quickly called out to her, "Miss Tang, there's a package for you."

Tang Ran was puzzled.

She's been busy with her engagement these past few days and hasn't bought anything.

The housekeeper took a paper bag from the service desk and handed it to her; it looked like a document.

Tang Ran took it and checked the recipient information; it was indeed her.

Tang Ran glanced at the sender's address again. The package was sent from Jiangcheng, and Tang Ran wasn't very familiar with the address or phone number.

"What's wrong?" Song Zhixu asked.

"I don't remember having any packages to receive."

As Tang Ran spoke, she directly tore open the sealing strip.

The paper bag contained white A4 paper, which looked like a contract.

Seeing that it didn't look strange, Tang Ran didn't think much of it and took it out directly.

The elevator arrived, and Song Zhixu led her inside, swiping the elevator card.

Tang Ran opened the bag with a puzzled look, was surprised for a second, then quickly closed it and put it back in the paper bag.

When Song Zhixu turned around, she only saw her stuff the things back into the box.

Tang Ran smiled and explained casually, "The company documents were accidentally sent to my home."

Song Zhixu nodded without saying anything.

When Tang Ran put the document back, she saw a small projection in the elevator car.

The paper bag didn't contain company documents, but rather a shop purchase and sale contract.

The elevator reached the nineteenth floor.

Tang Ran: "I'll go back and change my clothes to come find you."

"good."

Song Zhixu nodded, noticing that she hadn't even reached the door yet when she eagerly took out her phone.

Tang Ran pulled up the profile picture of the loquat tree and sent a message: 【Did you buy the shops on Chaoxi Street?】

The reply came quickly: 【This is a gift for your engagement.】

Tang Ran didn't know what to say.

The loquat tree avatar sent another message: "I'm going to Jiangcheng in a while, let's meet up sometime."

Tang Ran replied "okay" without hesitation.

After entering the room, Tang Ran took out the contract again and looked at it.

The seller's name on the contract was her mother's name, and the buyer's name was hers; only the signature area was blank.

Tang Ran took out her phone and called her mother again.

"Nannan, are you done with your work?"

The engagement was handled by Tang Ran and Song Zhixu together, and both sets of parents went back last night.

"Hmm." Tang Ran hesitated for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Mommy, I want to ask, who bought the shops on Chaoxi Street?"

"The mother doesn't know the specific buyer either; the other party is an agency they've entrusted. What's wrong?"

She signed the contract for the shop on Chaoxi Street, and the other party had already transferred most of the funds; all that was left was to complete the property transfer at the housing authority.

"No, I just wanted to ask." Tang Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems her mother doesn't know about this yet.

Tang Wanru didn't notice anything unusual about Tang Ran and asked her, "Have you prepared the gift for the Song family this afternoon?"

"Everything is ready, Mommy, don't worry," Tang Ran replied.

Bringing a gift is a basic courtesy when visiting someone's home for the first time after engagement.

The mother and daughter chatted for a few more minutes, then Tang Ran hung up the phone, changed her clothes, and went next door to find Song Zhixu.

Before leaving the house, I grabbed two boxes of ice cream from the refrigerator.

The weather this year is abnormal. Even though it's almost autumn, it's still 35 degrees Celsius every day. Tang Ran took a shower at home, but she still couldn't cool down her body.

Tang Ran pressed her fingerprint to lock the door into room 1901.

Song Zhixu came out of the bedroom with her long hair tied up and the ends slightly damp, indicating that she had taken a shower because it was too hot.

Tang Ran felt that bringing ice cream was a very wise decision.

She handed Song Zhixu an ice cream and said with a smile, "Want some ice cream?"

Song Zhixu took the ice cream and then took the other box from her hand as well.

Tang Ran was stunned for a moment, then quickly grabbed her wrist, "That's mine."

Why is it involving robbery?

Is Song Zhixu already eating alone after getting engaged?

"What's the date today?" Song Zhixu asked her.

Tang Ran was completely baffled as to why she suddenly brought this up. "26?"

Song Zhixu sighed helplessly, "Have you forgotten about Pengcheng?"

Tang Ran reacted for a moment and understood what she meant. Calculating the time, it was about right.

Song Zhixu took the ice cream and walked towards the kitchen.

"No, they haven't arrived yet." Tang Ran quickly chased after her. "My predictions aren't always accurate; it might not be in the next couple of days."

"Then you should pay even more attention to taking good care of your health."

Song Zhixu remained unmoved and deftly stuffed the ice cream into the refrigerator.

"It won't affect anything. Even if we come on time, it'll still be several days away."

Tang Ran held onto the refrigerator door, preventing Song Zhixu from closing it, and looked at her pitifully, "How about I just eat half, okay?"

The more Song Zhixu forbade Tang Ran to eat, the more she wanted to eat.

"No." Song Zhixu removed her hand without hesitation.

Tang Ran grabbed her wrist with her other hand and shook it, then said in a soft, coquettish voice, "Just one bite, okay?"

She's so greedy.

"Have you forgotten how much it hurt last time?" Song Zhixu remained unmoved.

"If you don't want to eat, then don't eat." Tang Ran walked out with her head hanging low.

If she had known it would be like this, she would have eaten at home before coming over.

Song Zhixu followed her out and comforted her, "I'll have someone bring some fruit up."

"Fine." Tang Ran nodded reluctantly.

"good."

Song Zhixu patted Tang Ran's head and used his phone to call the housekeeper to send fruit.

Tang Ran glanced at her out of the corner of her eye, and seeing that she had started typing, she nimbly turned around and ran back to the kitchen.

He opened the refrigerator door, pulled out the drawer, and picked up the ice cream—a series of actions performed smoothly and seamlessly.

Suddenly, someone grabbed my waist tightly, dragged my legs, and lifted me up into the air.

"ah!"

Tang Ran was startled, and the ice cream she was holding slipped from her hand and fell back into the refrigerator drawer.

What are you doing?

Upon seeing that it was Song Zhixu, Tang Ran twisted and tried to break free.

"Be good."

Song Zhixu frowned slightly, picked her up and placed her steadily on the kitchen counter. With a flick of her long leg, the ice cream that Tang Ran had just been holding disappeared from her sight once again.

Tang Ran was stunned for a moment. She glared angrily at Song Zhixu, her mouth firing like a machine gun.

"Song Zhixu! How could you change so much right after getting engaged!"

You weren't like this before!

"Now they won't even give us a bite of ice cream!"

"Don't you like me anymore?!"

"If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn't have been with you..."

Song Zhixu reached out and tapped her forehead, interrupting her with a stern face, "Don't talk nonsense."

Tang Ran also realized that she couldn't say those last words.

She pursed her lips, but was still unconvinced. "If you won't let me eat ice cream, then I'll eat yours."

She grabbed Song Zhixu's hand and bit it.

"hiss."

Tang Ran immediately stopped what she was doing.

She didn't bite very hard.

"I accidentally twisted my ankle when I hugged you just now," Song Zhixu explained.

Why do you have to hug her?

Tang Ran was stubborn, but she still took Song Zhixu's hand and examined it carefully. Song Zhixu's wrist was a little red. "Does it hurt?"

She hadn't noticed at all and didn't know when she had hurt Song Zhixu.

"It's nothing." Song Zhixu withdrew his hand, pinched Tang Ran's cheek, and coaxed her softly, "You don't care that you can't eat ice cream, but I don't want you to feel uncomfortable like last time."

"It hurts me to see you in pain."

She looked up and gently kissed Tang Ran's lips, looking into her eyes, and said earnestly, "So Ranran, promise me you'll take good care of yourself and won't make me worry, okay?"

Upon hearing her words, Tang Ran was stunned, and her ears began to heat up.

Ugh, ugh, ugh, if you don't want me to eat it, you don't want me to eat it. Why are you suddenly saying such cheesy lovey-dovey things?

"I'll go get you some medicated wine to apply the medicine." Tang Ran wanted to slip away before her face got too hot.

"Ranran hasn't agreed to me yet," Song Zhixu stopped her.

"I understand." Tang Ran supported herself as she got down.

Song Zhixu still didn't let her go. She placed her hands on Tang Ran's legs, raised her head and pressed it against Tang Ran's lips, her voice low and deep, "Didn't Ranran just say she wanted to eat me?"

Tang Ran's breath hitched, and she lowered her head to kiss her.

*

The two left early in the afternoon. Tang Ran went to the mall. A few days ago, she ordered a few things to take with her when she went to Jingting.

"Why did you take so much stuff?"

Jiang Mei was waiting for the two of them at the door when she saw the housekeeper take out more than a dozen bags from the trunk.

Tang Ran turned to look at Song Zhixu, letting her explain herself.

"I bought it on my own initiative, but Ranran turned out to be much better than I prepared," Song Zhixu said with a smile to Jiang Mei.

Jiang Mei understood the meaning behind her daughter's words.

The daughter thought Ranran hadn't thought of it and prepared a gift on her own initiative, but it turned out that Ranran had already prepared it in advance.

Jiang Mei specifically asked her daughter to bring Tang Ran back today, just to see how the two were getting along.

Tang Ran's thoughtfulness in preparing a gift in advance is evident.

This also indirectly shows that they are not opposed to this engagement with a different person at the last minute.

Upon realizing this, Jiang Mei was overjoyed.

She pulled Tang Ran over and then looked at Song Zhixu with disdain, saying, "Our Ranran is so thoughtful, you don't need to worry about her."

Song Zhixu smiled; indeed, she had worried too much.

Tang Ran is several years younger than her, but she doesn't need to take care of her when they're together.

This time, the gift was also more thoughtfully prepared than hers.

Tang Ran prepared a set of fine Huzhou brushes for Jiang Mei, handmade by a famous artist, specifically for painting traditional Chinese paintings.

The gift for Mr. Song was top-quality tea, which was specially purchased through a friend.

"Ranran is so thoughtful."

Grandpa Song was glad that he had a reliable daughter and that Tang Ran hadn't become someone else's wife.

After dinner, Song Zhixu and Grandpa Song went to the tea room to discuss company matters.

Song's stock has already stabilized, and in the last two days it has even surpassed its previous high.

"What are your plans to do about Xiong Fangnian?"

Grandpa Song personally brewed the tea, using tea leaves brought by Tang Ran.

Song Zhixu: "They should be able to behave for a while."

Xiong Fangnian suffered a great loss, but it did not fundamentally damage him; he was not reduced to the point of being a drowning dog.

It's not time to give them a good beating yet.

Seeing her calm reaction, Old Master Song guessed that she probably already had a plan, so he didn't say anything more.

He hadn't been involved in the company's affairs for several years, and this time he only inquired because the old shareholders were causing trouble.

Grandpa Song took a sip of tea, looked at his daughter, and asked, "How are things between you and Ranran?"

He cared more about his daughter's relationship with Tang Ran than about the company.

Although the person was replaced at the last minute, he still felt that things were not as simple as he knew them to be.

But his daughter was always deep in thought, and he couldn't figure her out.

During the meal, Grandpa Song deliberately paid attention to the interaction between Song Zhixu and Tang Ran.

I just felt that the two of us were neither too close nor too distant; there was plenty of harmony, but not enough intimacy.

"fine."

The tone was similar to when talking about work, with no change.

"Ranran is a good child. If you two can get along well, your mother and I will be at ease." Old Master Song probed subtly, "What do you think?"

"Let nature take its course," Song Zhixu said noncommittally, offering no clear opinion.

Soft approaches won't work; we have to resort to hard ones.

Grandpa Song glared at him, “What do you mean by ‘let nature take its course’? You’re already in your thirties. If you keep waiting, you won’t be able to become a grandfather by the time your father is buried.”

Song Zhixu calmly poured him more tea, deftly deflecting the question, "You're only sixty-six this year."

With improved medical conditions in China, the average life expectancy in developed areas like Jiangcheng is over eighty years.

Unable to be swayed by either soft or hard tactics, Old Master Song was at his wit's end.

He couldn't possibly get anything out of his daughter.

Grandpa Song put down his cup, got up, and walked out.

In the hall.

Tang Ran was talking to Jiang Mei at that moment.

"Young Miss." Butler Wu Yu's voice came from the doorway.

Song Wuqi pushed his suitcase in, his hair and clothes mostly wet.

Wu Yu took the suitcase from her and quickly told the aunt to get a towel.

Upon hearing the sound, Jiang Mei quickly got up from the sofa and walked towards the foyer.

"Why are you so wet? Go upstairs and wash up."

She knew that Song Wuqi's flight to Beijing was scheduled for the evening, and he hadn't left yet, probably because the flight was canceled due to the rain.

"Um."

Song Wuqi didn't say much, just glanced in the direction of the living room, nodded, and went upstairs.

Jiang Mei walked back to the sofa and said to Tang Ran, "It's raining outside, so you should stay here tonight and go back tomorrow when it clears up."

Jiangcheng experiences frequent showers in the summer; you never know when it will start raining.

Tang Ran glanced out the window; the rain was quite heavy.

It's not a problem with her staying overnight, but judging from Jiang Mei's smiling face, she definitely won't let her sleep in the guest room.

Although the two have slept together before, their public persona has always been that of a couple temporarily paired up as fiancées. Isn't it a bit too fast to arrange for them to sleep together like this?

"Let's ask Zhixu later," Tang Ran said, not giving a direct answer.

Grandpa Song walked over and overheard Tang Ran and Jiang Mei's conversation. He also said, "Driving in this heavy rain is not safe. Stay home tonight."

A muffled clap of thunder sounded just in time outside the window.

Tang Ran had no way to refute it.

It takes more than an hour to drive from Jingting to Shengming Mansion. It's not safe to walk directly there, and it would be too late to leave after the rain stops.

"Let's go back tomorrow morning."

Song Zhixu walked over and sat down next to Tang Ran.

She knew what the old man and woman were up to; if it didn't work this time, there would be another time, so she might as well just go along with them to save trouble.

"Um."

Tang Ran blushed.

I still have to put on an act.

Hearing their words, Song Wuqi stopped and looked down.

Noticing someone staring at her, Tang Ran subconsciously looked up.

Song Wuqi looked at her with a deep, unsettling gaze.

Tang Ran was taken aback.

An uncomfortable feeling welled up inside me.