Chapter 36 Keeping the Appointment

Zhan Lintian couldn't hear clearly and wanted to get up and walk over, but seeing the faint smile in Jiang Xia's eyes, he stopped in his tracks.

Little Wenwen is stuffing vegetables into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out.

My uncle rested his chin on his hands, staring at the distance with a gloomy expression.

My uncle was in a bad mood, so I decided to keep quiet, otherwise I'd have to force myself to eat a lot more.

She continued to eat obediently, convinced that she had grown up and was no longer stupid.

At this moment, Jiang Xia was looking down at his phone, fiddling with the flight refund page, and somewhat clumsily cancelled his ticket.

The money was returned to Wu Ming's account.

Wu Ming was chatting with someone when he received the first notification that his flight had been rescheduled and he would be getting a refund, so he immediately made a phone call.

He asked anxiously, "Jiang Xia, why did you refund the plane ticket money?"

Jiang Xia said gently, "The airline said there was too much overbooking, so they called to ask if we would agree to rebook you on the next available flight, and they'll give you an extra 1,500 yuan free of charge."

"I'm on vacation right now, no rush, I agree."

I was just about to tell you.

Jiang Xia's voice was calm, and Wu Ming breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good."

Jiang Xia asked, "Otherwise, do you think it's me who doesn't want to go? Indeed, it's not fun going alone."

He countered with a question, and Wu Ming, unable to press further, could only awkwardly reply, "No, you've definitely had a great time following my travel itinerary."

Wu Ming quickly ended the conversation: "Then I wish you a pleasant island trip in advance."

Jiang Xia looked at her phone and said softly, "Yes."

Wu Ming had other things to do, so he hung up quickly.

Jiang Xia looked at the phone on the table, tilted her head in confusion. "You were calling me like crazy all afternoon, why the rush tonight?"

He looked at Wu Zhou and said somewhat slowly, "Mr. Wu, if I may ask, is Wu Ming busy tonight?"

Wu Zhou hummed in agreement: "I arranged some things for him."

"Let's eat first," Mr. Wu said, unwilling to talk any further.

Jiang Xia tilted her head slightly to look at him, then suddenly chuckled. It must have been Wu Zhou who arranged this on purpose.

Given Wu Ming's carefree personality, he wouldn't be easily threatened by Wu Zhou without any leverage over him.

Jiang Xia vaguely knew that there was something Wu Ming was unwilling to reveal.

He clenched his fingers, not daring to pry. Friends shouldn't pry too much into each other's affairs; maintaining boundaries is the best way to preserve a relationship.

The food was served quickly. After a busy day, he hadn't eaten much at noon, and the aroma whetted his taste buds.

The restaurants where Wu Zhou treated him to meals on these occasions all suited his taste.

Jiang Xia couldn't help but glance at the man in front of her.

"What's wrong?"

Wu Zhou poured him some tea: "Try this tea, you should like it."

Jiang Xia took a sip, savoring the sweet aftertaste, which diluted the saltiness in his mouth.

"A very mellow tea."

Wu Zhou simply said, "If you like it, eat more."

He didn't say anything during the dinner, and Jiang Xia's tense mood gradually dissipated.

After the meal, Wu Zhou looked at him and asked, "Would you like to go for a walk outside?"

Jiang Xia looked at the bouquet of roses: "I..."

He felt embarrassed and didn't really want to walk outside with a man while carrying a bouquet of flowers, and he couldn't bear the strange looks from others.

Wu Zhou said softly, "Just wander around nearby. That's the hotel's viewing area. No outsiders come here except for guests. There's almost no one there."

Jiang Xia's heart seemed to skip a beat. He looked up at Wu Zhou, his lips trembling, but he couldn't utter a word.

He realized his own hesitation.

In the end, Jiang Xia agreed to his suggestion.

He walked side by side with Wu Zhou, holding a rose. Zhan Lintian watched from a booth not far away. Wenwen waited until Uncle Jiang left before asking, "Uncle, why didn't we go and say hello to Uncle Jiang's friend?"

Zhan Lintian ruffled her hair: "Because he is very happy."

Zhan Lintian picked her up, trying to distract the child: "Are you full?"

"I'm full!" she answered crisply.

Zhan Lintian said, "Your uncle will take you home first."

Wenwen looked a little sleepy and hummed in response.

After dropping the child off at home, Zhan Lintian didn't go back to his bedroom. Instead, he drove to the building where Jiang Xia lived and waited for a while until Jiang Xia drove back.

As soon as he got out of the car with the roses in his hand, he saw Zhan Lintian's car.

Jiang Xia quickened his pace, walked briskly to President Zhan's car, and gently knocked on the window: "President Zhan."

Zhan Lintian snapped out of his daze, quickly opened the car window and door, and hurriedly got out.

Jiang Xia was still holding that bouquet of flowers. The dark red bouquet suited him well, and the loss of the restaurant's dazzling brilliance made him look even more refined and radiant.

Zhan Lintian smiled and put his arm around his shoulder: "Come on, let's go upstairs and I'll treat you to a cup of tea."

With his body heat close, Jiang Xia was led by him, letting out a soft "Hey!" and following his steps with some embarrassment.

Zhan Lintian said casually, "Did Wu Zhou confess his feelings?"

Jiang Xia blushed slightly and said, "No, it's just to celebrate my successful work today."

The two walked up the stairs while talking.

Zhan Lintian asked, "Jiang Xia, if he confesses his feelings tonight, will you say yes?"

The gorge remained silent.

Silence signifies hesitation.

Zhan Lintian stopped walking, and Jiang Xia instinctively stopped as well.

The motion-activated lights in the hallway went out, and in the silence, a man's deep voice said, "If you like, you can give it a try."

"I……"

The lights came back on, and Jiang Xia looked at Zhan Lintian.

His eyes were dark: "You can't avoid having something just because you're afraid of losing it. Whether you're happy or miserable depends on how you feel right now."

Jiang Xia clutched the bouquet tightly; he understood this principle.

He has read many books, attended classes taught by many famous teachers, and absorbed many ideas, each with its own logic.

Don't fall into nihilism.

He just... he just...

Jiang Xia couldn't say whether he liked it or not; he was more aware than anyone of the difference in their family backgrounds.

Jiang Xia walked past him onto the platform, opened the door, and turned on the light: "Mr. Zhan, would you like a cup of tea?"

Zhan Lintian watched him brew tea, bring it over, and then sit down next to him.

The aroma of tea filled the air. Jiang Xia held a cup of tea, watching the tea leaves float in the water, and said softly, "I like Wu Ming."

Zhan Lintian's eyelids twitched.

Jiang Xia added: "In the past."

Zhan Lintian breathed a sigh of relief.

"If he once liked me, and could only find happiness with me, or if he was unhappy in his life... then I would still run to him without hesitation."

Zhan Lintian said, "Without hesitation?"

Jiang Xia smiled at him and said, "Yes, I will work hard to earn money and make sure he lives a happy and carefree life."

Zhan Lintian really wanted Jiang Xia to stop for a while; he needed to think about Jiang Xia's role in this relationship.

However, he couldn't bear to interrupt Jiang Xia, who was willing to confide in him.

"I hope there are no forks in his life. I may not need this relationship, but I can't bear to see him suffer."

“I can tolerate his despicable behavior in relationships because it’s a matter between him and his current girlfriend, or his past or future girlfriend. I just hope he can be happy.”

"Almost everyone in the Wu family doted on him."

Jiang Xia looked at Zhan Lintian with bright eyes: "I hate him because I hate his lack of honesty in relationships, but all of this still cannot erase the help he once gave me."

After saying that, Jiang Xia chuckled and took a sip of tea.

Zhan Lintian stared at him, almost interrogating him: "Is it gratitude or love?"

Jiang Xia pondered, "I once really wanted to live with him."

Zhan Lintian couldn't help but chuckle, not as a sarcastic remark, but as a compliment.

Jiang Xia seemed to be answering, but every word he uttered avoided what he really wanted to say.

However, Jiang Xia stated frankly tonight that he no longer needed to beat around the bush, meaning it was in the past, not now.

Zhan Lintian recalled that dream from back then, in which he lived with Jiang Xia, and Jiang Xia would affectionately feed him baked cookies.

She would kiss the corners of his eyes and the tips of his eyebrows...

Perhaps that's the life Jiangxia wanted...

Wu Ming struck out, so what about Wu Zhou?

He narrowed his eyes slightly, and the smile in Jiang Xia's eyes was particularly evident tonight.

His Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he thought about how Wu Zhou would kiss him or even do something more intimate in the future.

Zhan Lintian chuckled, put his hand behind Jiang Xia's back on his waist, and leaned closer to smell the lingering rose fragrance on him. He then asked a tricky question: "If Wu Zhou confesses his feelings, would you accept his affections out of gratitude for his help during this time?"

Jiang Xia was about to answer, but President Zhan was too close, and his brain couldn't process it for a moment.

Zhan Lintian's voice was hoarse: "No, right? You're still sure you really, really like him, that you'd only agree if you wanted to spend your whole life with him."

Then...why can't it be myself?

President Zhan said in a low voice, "Jiang Xia, you were really happy in the Fog Kingdom. I just want to make you even happier."

He felt sorry for Jiang Xia.

"Let's put it aside after Wu Ming's engagement banquet."

Zhan Lintian gently patted his hair, then lowered his head slightly. It seemed that a strand of hair brushed against the corner of his lips and was lightly kissed by him.

He liked the action, and Jiang Xia didn't object to it either.

As he grew up, few people made this gesture of affection towards him.

Perhaps it's because he's not short, standing at 1.8 meters tall, and if he wore leather shoes... Wu Ming is about the same height as him. Rather than patting his own hair, Wu Ming prefers to hug himself.

Jiang Xia came to his senses and felt something was off, but President Zhan's demeanor was calm, as if he had always been this way when he first met him.

I guess I'm just very outgoing and friendly with everyone.

Jiang Xia felt at ease after thinking about this.

Fortunately, Mr. Zhan didn't stay long; he drank his tea and then went downstairs.

Jiang Xia watched him leave, and an hour later received a text message from him.

"I'm home now."

Jiang Xia breathed a sigh of relief. It was nearly an hour's drive to General Manager Zhan's home via the ring road…

"It's good to be home. Good night."

"good evening."

Jiang Xia sat at the dining table, put the roses into a vase, and filled it with water.

If Wu Ming comes and sees this, he will definitely argue with me about the origin of this bouquet of flowers, but he won't be coming anytime soon.

Jiang Xia's fingertips brushed against the tender petals.

Jiang Xia murmured, "See you in seven days, Wu Ming."

Jiang Xia prepared a gift for him.

Considering it was an engagement party, he went to the mall and bought two bottles of perfume: one for men and one for women, along with a gift box.

He swiped his card and spent 30,000 yuan. Gifts at this price wouldn't be too stingy for the Wu and Xie families.

As time went by, Jiangxia's heart became calmer.

Until the day before the engagement banquet.

According to Wu Ming's plan, he should have boarded the plane to the island the night before, but he lied to Wu Ming, claiming that the plane had been rescheduled for this morning.

I specifically changed it to this morning because Wu Ming would be too busy to care whether he had boarded the plane or not.

After getting up early, Jiang Xia politely declined either Wu Zhou's or Zhan Lintian's invitation to travel together.

He wanted to drive there alone so that he could leave more easily after the engagement party.

Zhan Lintian sent a message: "The weather is great today."

Jiang Xia drew back the curtains, and the sunlight was blinding. He raised his hand to shield his eyes.

He looked out the window at the blue sky. It was indeed a beautiful day. How would Wu Ming, on the sunny lawn, dress to welcome the day?

Will the other person wear a serious black suit with a flower, or will they wear a trendy new fashion from the runway?

Jiang Xia poured himself a cup of tea, but didn't drink it. He took a deep breath and then let out a long sigh.

"Why……"

Jiang Xia picked up the gift and went downstairs...