Chapter 25 Jian Taigong Fishing

"I... I mean, with your achievements, you're not quite at the level worth following." Jian Zhen almost stammered, sitting up straight to conduct an emergency public relations effort.

"Oh." With the alarm lifted, Xu Weisheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief—he had thought Jian Zhen could read minds and had seen through his momentary infatuation!

"How are you going to get back later? I'll have Hao Jiaren drive you." Xu Weisheng glanced at his watch; there was only an hour and a half left before he was supposed to leave for the airport.

"Let's walk back." Jian Zhen had her own thoughts: walking home would allow them to spend more time alone together, while driving back would inevitably involve a strange driver who would spoil the mood. Although she felt bad for Boss Hao, who had just treated her to two drinks, she could only ask him to understand at this crucial moment.

"With all that you're wearing!" Xu Weisheng pointed down at her exposed ankles and said mercilessly, "By the time you get home, your ankles will be amputated. Don't be shy, Hao Jiaren has nothing to do anyway, he'll give you a ride."

“I’m not just being polite.” Jian Zhen shook her head, firmly refusing.

Xu Weisheng looked at her with a puzzled expression, waiting for her to say the next sentence.

Jian Zhen sighed helplessly, "There's no hope for me!" She casually made up an excuse: "I'm dizzy and want to get some fresh air to dispel the smell of alcohol. Otherwise, if my parents smell it when I get home, they'll dig three feet into the ground and ask me everything."

"Well—okay." Xu Weisheng had witnessed firsthand the suffocating love of the young lady's family. He had never experienced it himself and found it difficult to judge whether it was good or bad. He could only scratch his brow, then had a sudden inspiration and said, "I'll go to Hao Jiaren's place and get you some clothes!"

"Ah~" Jian Zhen looked embarrassed. She had a bit of a phobia of germs and always felt awkward wearing other people's clothes, especially strange men's clothes.

"It's okay, it's new." Xu Weisheng said, got up and greeted Hao Jiaren. Then the two gestured and went into Boss Hao's private warehouse. Jian Zhen stared at the door nervously. After a while, they came out. Xu Weisheng was carrying an extra-long black down jacket, while Hao Jiaren was carrying a foldable bicycle.

"Try it on, little sister, this dress is new, the tag is still on!" Hao Jia unfolded his bicycle and saw Xu Weisheng lift the clothes hanger and pull the zipline.

How come you have new clothes here that you've never worn?

Hao Jiaren replied fluently, "I bought the wrong number."

Xu Weisheng, standing nearby, sneered, ripped off the price tag, handed the clothes to Jian Zhen, and calmly pointed out, "It's a tool he prepared for picking up pretty single women."

Jian Zhen's gaze darted back and forth between the two of them with a mixture of belief and doubt. She took the down jacket and glanced at it. It was indeed new. Although wearing it would turn her into the Black Impermanence, she had no choice but to compromise, considering that it was the only compromise.

"Doesn't it look like a caterpillar?" Jian Zhen bent down and pulled the zipper from her ankle to her chin. Once the hood of her down jacket was pulled up, only half of her face was visible.

Hao Jiaren looked at her, then at Xu Weisheng, and was shocked: Wow, what an adorable creature! How could Xu Weisheng resist making a move?

"It's alright." Xu Weisheng couldn't help but chuckle, but Hao Jiaren jumped in: "No, no, little sister, you're so thin you're like a sheet of paper, but you still look slim in this big black coat—"

Xu Weisheng snatched the bicycle from his hand, interrupting his smooth flattery with a gesture. Then, he grabbed the handlebars with one hand and pinched Jian Zhen's shoulder with the other, turning her around 180 degrees: "Let's go, I'll ride you home."

The two squeezed out of the narrow main entrance of "North of North Island". Jian Zhen was holding the wool coat she had brought with her in her arms. The heat she had just accumulated indoors was immediately blown away, and she hugged the wool coat even tighter.

"What time is it?" She walked to the back of the bicycle.

"3:30." Xu Weisheng wiped the dust off the seat with his gloves and tossed his head to signal her to come up.

"Are you cold?" Jian Zhen sat down to the side, and was about to offer to lend him her coat when the car suddenly started moving. Startled, she grabbed Xu Weisheng's coat at the waist in a panic.

“You won’t feel cold if you move around,” Xu Weisheng replied with a hearty laugh, having successfully pulled off his prank.

This guy is so annoying... Jian Zhen was speechless and didn't bother with him. She looked up at the sky. At 3:30 in the morning, the cold air froze the world into a clear and deep blue glass. The moon hung in the sky, yellow and shiny, like a cookie that someone had left uneaten, sweet to the point of being cloying.

Traffic in the city is usually congested all year round, but as they walked through the streets and alleys, not a single person or car was disturbed, not even a bird. It was probably because New Year's Eve was approaching, and everyone was rushing to their own reunion, which made the two of them feel like they were traveling through another dimension.

As Jian Zhen watched the surrounding streetlights, shops, roadside trees, and flower beds rush past, a strange feeling of self-pity welled up in her heart. She thought that in less than a kilometer, she would be separated from Xu Weisheng again. For the past six months, they had been out of contact for ninety percent of the time. After their last parting in Yungang, Xu Weisheng thought they would never see each other again, so he didn't even leave her a phone number.

Now, even though they have each other's contact information and the relationship seems to have progressed further, the other party still has the right to walk away at any time.

Jian Zhen recalled her unintentional question at the bar, "Do you still need to pursue me?" This thought, deeply hidden in her subconscious, almost broke the ice between them, but the other person didn't take the initiative. What does that mean?

Jianzhen's Casanova roommate once told her: Men are very simple creatures. If they like you, they will definitely take the initiative. If they don't take the initiative, it can only mean that they don't love you or don't love you enough.

Jian Zhen optimistically hopes that Xu Weisheng's condition is in the milder category—not loving enough.

This person may have poor eyesight, lack taste, or be incredibly slow-witted, but there's nothing I can do. I've already fallen for him, and even if he's emotionally clueless, I can only try to win him over and then train him.

While Jian Zhen was pondering her fishing plan at her own pace, Xu Weisheng was completely focused, afraid that if he slowed down his bicycle, she would get cold.

The path I rode in along was lined with century-old cypress trees by the streetlights, still vibrant even in the harsh winter. It lacked the desolate atmosphere of new housing developments, and it wasn't as crowded and dilapidated as old residential buildings awaiting renovation. This place was safe and orderly. In Hao Jiaren's words, there was an invisible barrier here, and the air inside smelled of power.

As they approached, Xu Weisheng slowed down. Not afraid of offending Jian Zhen, he jokingly asked, "Just wanted to interview you, have you lived here since you were a child?"

"Hmm?" Jian Zhen sniffed and shook her head. "Before I was eight years old, I often slept at my maternal grandmother's house. Look, she lived in the front yard."

Well, it's still this area.

Xu Weisheng chuckled, squeezed the brakes, and stopped under the dappled shadows of the trees. He turned back and asked, "How does it feel to be a princess since childhood?"

"What princess?" Jian Zhen was anxious. She was a very independent person and usually didn't care about other people's gossip. But she was only affected by this kind of evaluation. She punched Xu Weisheng in the back and said, "Let me tell you, the Qing Dynasty is long gone. There are no princesses in this era. I have worked hard all my life, and my family has nothing to do with me."

Xu Weisheng got out of the car and pleaded, "Okay, okay, Miss Jian, Ms. Jian, I misspoke. You're not a princess, you are—"

Jian Zhen glanced at the lights in the house, turned around and glared at him, saying proudly, "She's just an ordinary, precious daughter."

Xu Weisheng leaned against the tree trunk, laughing so hard he bent over. He now understood how Jian Zhen had developed such a proud yet kind nature; she must have received a lot of love growing up! He was a little too tired to laugh anymore; the dry, cold winter air made his throat feel dry and hard.

"Go home quickly." Xu Weisheng waved his hand while bending over.

"Clothes." Jian Zhen's fingers gripped the zipper, wanting to take them off but not daring to.

"Go back, it's only a short walk, don't catch a cold," Xu Weisheng said hoarsely, leaning against the tree trunk as he straightened up.

"Okay." Jian Zhen lowered her hand, ready to leave, then glanced at him again and asked softly, "Are you going straight to the airport?"

“Hmm,” Xu Weisheng said quietly.

"Have a safe journey." Jian Zhen exhaled a small puff of white breath, stepped past him, and walked away. Just as Xu Weisheng was hesitating whether to turn back, she walked back and stood in front of him, asking, "Can you let me know you've landed safely?"

Xu Weisheng was taken aback, then blinked: "Okay, goodbye."

"I have one more thing to say!" Jian Zhen said urgently.

“…You go ahead.” Xu Weisheng’s heart was in his throat.

Jian Zhen smiled suddenly and said playfully, "Happy New Year."

"You too—" Before Xu Weisheng could finish speaking, Jian Zhen had already happily run far away. He looked back and saw a stick figure with smaller and smaller limbs against a dark blue background!

"Happy New Year," he said with a relaxed smile, silently keeping those four words in his heart.

For Jian Zhen, the New Year began with exchanging blessings on a snowy night. After that, the entire holiday passed by in a hurry, like a toy wound up at double speed.

As the holiday drew to a close, the house was filled with sorrow. Grandma was especially reluctant to part with her daughter. She would scold Director Jian for letting her daughter go to work in such a far place, while secretly asking Jian Zhen for her boss's phone number.

"I told her to wait until after the fifteenth to go back to work."

"Grandma!" Jian Zhen coaxed her, "My boss is heartless. If you make such a request to her, I'll definitely be in for a world of trouble later."

Grandma sighed, unable to think of a good way to deal with these capitalist lackeys.

Jian Zhen calmed her grandmother down, then slipped into her room. As soon as she closed the door, she began tidying up the suitcases spread out on the floor, her phone still tucked to her ear as she spoke to Lao Le. Her tone was practically fawning: "Director, what kind of side dishes from Liu Bi Ju would you like?"