Chapter 82 Snatching the Lantern (Added 3,000 words~)

They can control everything, but can they control whether they sleep on the sofa or not?

Jiang Xia thought silently for a while, cheered himself up, and then prepared to sneak up and cowardly go to sleep on the sofa.

But Wu Zhou's hand was pressed against his waist, and Zhan Lintian's hand was on his shoulder.

He struggled for a moment, wondering if he should crawl under the covers and climb out from the other end.

Jiang Xia's escape plan was ruthlessly shattered by reality.

Because he was completely unable to move.

While he was debating whether to move him, Zhan Lintian woke up.

The man's lips brushed against his ear, his voice very soft and husky as he asked affectionately, "What's wrong?"

He was still asleep, half-asleep, seemingly sleeping well.

Jiang Xia answered softly, "It's a little cold."

"Then I'll hold you." With that, he hugged Jiang Xia tighter.

Zhan Lintian's voice was hoarse as he whispered, "I was afraid you wouldn't feel comfortable before going to sleep, so I didn't dare hug you too tightly..."

Jiang Xia recalled the scene where he was woken up by the heat earlier and quickly said, "No, it will be too hot in a little while."

Zhan Lintian said with a smile, "It's alright."

When Jiang Xia was puzzled, the other party said slyly, "I deliberately lowered the air conditioner temperature by a few degrees before I went to sleep."

Jiang Xia clenched his fist, thinking to himself: Shameless.

Fortunately, Zhan Lintian moved closer to him, and after getting closer, Jiang Xia felt the temperature was comfortable again.

Zhan Lintian gently rubbed his face against his cheek, coaxing him, "Go to sleep, you must be sleepy too."

Jiang Xia hummed in agreement.

As Jiang Xia was in a daze, he suddenly noticed that Wu Zhou behind him had moved a little closer.

Just when he thought it was his imagination, the other person gently patted his waist with their hand.

Jiang Xia thought it was an instinctive action.

Such intimate behavior made Jiang Xia's face flush.

He was also afraid that Zhan Lintian might have overheard his conversation with him.

Jiang Xia then placed his hand on his palm, trying to tell him to stop.

But the moment their fingertips touched each other's palms, in the next moment, Wu Zhou gently pinched his fingertips and slowly caressed them in bed.

Jiang Xia opened his eyes wide. Was he not asleep?

Wu Zhou chuckled softly, gripped Jiang Xia's hand tightly, and pressed it against his waist.

Like soothing a child, gently pat the side of the waist.

He didn't say anything, but Jiang Xia blushed even more as he teased her.

Jiang Xia had to admit that he slept quite well.

When Jiang Xia woke up in the morning, it was still dark and not yet fully light.

Zhan Lintian was already up, but Wu Zhou was not.

Jiang Xia vaguely remembered that a dozen minutes earlier, Zhan Lintian had hugged him tightly before getting out of bed, rubbing his cheeks against hers for a long time, as if he had sucked enough before getting up.

Wu Zhou saw Jiang Xia stare blankly at the ceiling with wide eyes, his body awake but his soul still not quite back in its place.

He gently rubbed one side of Jiang Xia's cheek with his palm.

Wu Zhou frowned in dissatisfaction; Zhan Lintian had just rubbed his face until it turned red.

When that guy hugs people, doesn't he know how to be a little gentler?

Wu Zhou sat with Jiang Xia in his arms, leaning against the headboard.

He had to hold Jiang Xia while she was still unconscious, otherwise she wouldn't agree to it later.

Secondly, once they successfully embrace, Jiang Xia will be more concerned with maintaining his dignity than struggling frantically when he sobers up later.

He understood Jiang Xia's personality and could manipulate him with ease.

Wu Zhou held Jiang Xia in his arms, letting most of Jiang Xia lean on him. Under the covers, their legs were touching.

Wu Zhou gently rubbed his toes against his foot.

Jiangxia doesn't like to wear socks to bed because she's afraid of getting stuffy and sweaty.

The river gorge stirred.

Wu Zhou explained, "It's nothing, don't move, let me touch your feet to see if they're cold."

Jiang Xia lowered his eyes and said in a muffled voice, "No need to be so... meticulous."

Wu Zhou kissed his forehead: "I want to be good to you. Isn't that how it is when you're in a relationship?"

Jiang Xia's voice grew weaker and weaker: "I haven't agreed yet..."

Wu Zhou interrupted him: "It's okay."

He said firmly, "You'll be one sooner or later, so you're just getting a taste of it now."

"Jiang Xia, you'll be like this in the future..."

He not only imagined himself, but also Jiang Xia's behavior.

Wu Zhou was very satisfied and confident.

Moreover... Wu Zhou hugged Jiang Xia's waist tightly...

His mind raced with thoughts of what would happen if Jiang Xia truly didn't want him...

Wu Zhou's eyes were dark. Impossible! Jiang Xia couldn't possibly leave him. He couldn't even accept the thought of it.

If possible... if I can't resist.

They might even consider partially imprisoning Jiang Xia, making him subject to their surveillance wherever he goes on Earth.

But that's for later.

Rather than forcing Jiang Xia to love him in a painful way, he preferred mutual affection and a deep connection between their hearts.

Therefore, he is now willing to give Jiangxia space.

When Wu Zhou woke up in Jiangxia and was about to get up, he decisively let go of her hand.

He watched as Jiang Xia took clothes out of the wardrobe.

Wenwen was in the living room outside, and Jiang Xia could vaguely hear her voice through the door.

It's likely that Mr. Zhan is instructing his niece to get along peacefully with the other children at kindergarten today.

Jiang Xia took the clothes to the bathroom and came out shortly after.

He adjusted his tie and shirt as he worked on his neck.

Wu Zhou got up and helped Jiang Xia fasten the buttons on his cuffs...

"Raise your hand..."

Jiang Xia, in a state of embarrassment, said: "I'll do it myself."

"No need, I'll just do it myself."

His movements were swift and efficient.

Jiang Xia didn't say much, mainly because by the time he realized what was happening, the other person had already quickly fastened the button for him.

Jiang Xia walked out the door, and Wenwen, carrying her kindergarten backpack, skipped and hopped to him, opening her arms.

Good morning, Uncle Jiang.

Jiang Xia picked her up and bounced her around: "Good morning, did you sleep well last night?"

Wenwen nodded.

Zhan Lintian came early in the morning to restrain her.

He rubbed his hair. How could a child have so much energy? He heard footsteps at 6:30 in the morning.

Wenwen wants to come and visit Jiangxia.

He lowered his voice and asked why.

Wenwen innocently said it was because Uncle Jiang was handsome.

Zhan Lintian was speechless. Of course it was good. Didn't he know whether it was good or not?

But that's not why she got out of bed barefoot in her pajamas.

Zhan Lintian quickly called the driver auntie who was staying at a nearby hotel to come and help her wash up and take her to kindergarten.

After they finished packing, they went downstairs together.

Jiang Xia was actually a little embarrassed. He stood at the door, wondering if he could wait a while before going down.

What if the neighbors see this and come to talk to me? How am I supposed to explain myself?

Jiangxia exhibits some symptoms of social shame.

Perhaps due to a bad family background, or perhaps because he was unwilling to talk about his parents' early death, he hated others prying into his private life.

Regardless of whether others inquire about his work or his personal life.

Even if the other party meant well, he still found it difficult to speak.

Making new friends is a good thing, and the neighbors will be happy for you.

But he always worried that if he parted ways with his friends and stopped keeping in touch, his neighbors would ask if he thought it was because of his terrible personality that his friends left one by one.

But now Wenwen is looking at him with her big, blinking eyes, and reaching out her hand for him to hold.

Jiang Xia quickly bent down slightly, sighing inwardly... Ah...

All right.

Let's not let the little girl be disappointed.

Wenwen went to kindergarten in the nanny van. After seeing her off, Jiang Xia looked at the two people behind her.

All three of them had cars, but Zhan Lintian's car and driver took Wenwen first, and he had to wait for the new driver and car to arrive.

Jiang Xia drives herself to the company, while Wu Zhou has recently been driving himself to Jiang Xia's house.

He feared that the more people who found out, the more embarrassed Jiang Xia would feel.

Now, Zhan Lintian took a long stride and approached Jiang Xia: "Jiang Xia, give me a ride."

Jiang Xia looked at him and offered to escort him there.

Jiang Xia had never been to his company. In fact, the three of them had offices that were not far apart, all located in the Economic Development Zone along the river.

Jiang Xia lowered his voice: "Wouldn't it be inappropriate for my car to drive there?"

Previously, Zhan Lintian directly revealed that he had prepared the drone show, which led some people to speculate about the relationship.

Jiang Xia did not want him to have to deal with more rumors and gossip in the future.

The key point is that Jiangxia's car had just been driven back from the 4S store not long ago. Before the accident, there hadn't been any heavy snow in Mengcheng. Now the roads are icy, and his car didn't have snow tires or snow chains.

The river was a bit slippery when driving through the gorge.

He could tolerate the level of slipperiness, but he wanted Zhan Lintian to sit in his car...

He looked at Wu Zhou's car.

There are no parking spaces here, so Wu Zhou's car is parked next to mine. Although it affects my ability to drive out of the "parking space", it's not too bad since we both go to work at the same time.

Jiang Xia glanced at Wu Zhou's car and noticed that the tires had been changed. He asked, "Why don't you ride in Mr. Wu's car?"

After Jiang Xia finished speaking, he looked at Wu Zhou and asked, "Is this convenient?"

Wu Zhou had been driving alone lately, and with the heavy snow making the roads slippery, Jiang Xia could tell he wasn't getting enough rest.

Fortunately, I got back early yesterday and went to bed early, so I look alright this morning.

Before Zhan Lintian could speak, Wu Zhou lowered his voice and picked up the keys: "Let's go, don't make things difficult for him."

Zhan Lintian clicked his tongue and followed along, dissatisfied.

But while Wu Zhou was warming up the car and reversing, instead of getting in, he "darted" to Jiang Xia's side and kissed him.

"See you tonight." Zhan Lintian looked down at Jiang Xia and rubbed his fingers.

He chuckled softly, "If Wu Zhou hadn't driven here, I would have successfully gotten into your passenger seat."

Jiang Xia rubbed her face and looked at him.

Zhan Lintian fixed his hair and said, "Uncle Jiang looks really handsome today."

Jiang Xia coughed and said, "Stop teasing me, let's go."

They drove off first, and Jiang Xia stood by the window and waved: "Be careful on the road."

Zhan Lintian sat in the back seat, and Wu Zhou wouldn't let him sit in the front passenger seat.

He wasn't angry; he just kept talking to Jiang Xia: "Don't worry, I'll message you when I arrive."

Jiang Xia drove away after watching them leave.

Today, after the snow, the sun shines brightly over the river gorge, forcing the sunshade to be lowered.

We encountered two rear-end collisions along the way.

He drove with extra caution, thinking that Zhan Lintian and Wu Zhou were on the same road to work as him, and should be no more than a dozen cars apart.

At this very moment, Zhan Lintian and Wu Zhou are in the car.

Looking at the red light ahead, Zhan Lintian asked, "Have you been staying at Jiang Xia's house lately?"

Wu Zhou replied calmly, "It's none of your business."

Zhan Lintian narrowed his eyes: "Jiang Xia didn't agree to your request either? What is he thinking?"

Wu Zhou finally spoke up: "He simply thinks that President Zhan has a large and successful family, and that he will definitely get married and have children in the future. He doesn't want to be held back by you or hold you back either."

Zhan Lintian frowned in displeasure: "Look at what your brother has done, Wu Zhou."

Wu Zhou's silence was indeed Wu Ming's fault.

When Wu Ming was in school, he must have made many promises to Jiang Xia in order to keep him occupied, and then he broke those promises one by one.

Wu Ming didn't say anything, but his actions were meant to make Jiang Xia tacitly agree that a rich young master like him should follow the common path in life as seen by the world.

Wu Zhou gripped the steering wheel tightly, his voice tinged with pain: "I once thought they were officially a couple... so I chose to offer my blessings..."

They were childhood sweethearts and had known each other for many years. Ever since Wu Ming met Jiang Xia, his social media feed was almost entirely filled with photos of her from junior high to high school.

While he was struggling in pain abroad, Wu Ming had his mother, grandfather, countless familiar friends, and his lover Jiang Xia in China.

He was very jealous.

At that time, as an adult, aside from jealousy, he didn't have many romantic thoughts about the fifteen or sixteen-year-old Jiang Xia; he just developed a strong interest in her.

He checks Wu Ming's WeChat Moments every day, even more frequently than he checks his fund investments.

Later, as Jiang Xia grew up, this feeling gradually changed.

He didn't know which day it was, but in a dream, Jiang Xia appeared in his arms.

I can't see it clearly...

After seeing Jiangxia in person, Meng became clearer and clearer, and by then Wu Ming, who was in college, could no longer hide his inferior nature.

Wu Zhou looked out the car window, concealing his emotions; he truly didn't understand...

Wu Ming is very much like his promiscuous father, while he himself is more like his maternal grandfather.

Grandpa preferred Wu Ming, who resembled his son. For the old man, his son's promiscuity was not a big problem; the continuation of the bloodline was the most important thing.

My mother... initially placed all her hopes on me.

Before leaving the country, she hugged herself and cried bitterly, saying that she was afraid that her two brothers would be harmed by that poisonous woman.

Human life is very fragile; a fall from a height, drowning, or a car accident can take their lives.

I'm really afraid of people who don't value their lives...

He was once his mother's hope and pride, so he went abroad alone...

But Wu Ming, who was more outgoing and lively and had been by her side for many years, gradually took over her life...

Wu Zhou couldn't remember when he had become estranged from his mother...

At that moment, the red light turned green, and before the car in front even started moving, the cars behind began honking their horns.

Wu Zhou frowned, already annoyed, and started the car, slowly moving forward.

With heavy traffic, he watched as the green light was about to turn yellow in the last three seconds, and there was still one car in front of him...

Wu Zhou looked at both sides again. It was the morning rush hour, and this was also one of the diversion entrances for transit trucks on the bypass road.

Remembering Jiang Xia's warning to be careful before setting off, Wu Zhou wasn't in a hurry. He didn't want to gamble on whether his rear tires would make it across the zebra crossing on a green light at the last second, or whether he'd be unlucky and run a yellow light...

Upon seeing this, Zhan Lintian said nothing, leaned back, and clasped his hands together.

Yes, it's better to be safe.

Just as his body touched the back of the back seat, the car suddenly lurched forward, spinning twice on the slippery, icy road. Wu Zhou quickly regained control of the vehicle.

Zhan Lintian struggled to sit up from his seat and covered his forehead.

Damn, I was careful on my side, but I still got rear-ended because someone ran my light!

Jiang Xia, who was behind, noticed that the traffic was moving slowly and thought to himself that there had probably been another car accident.

Many cars in Montreal haven't had time to install snow chains yet, so rear-end collisions and scrapes are quite common.

He drove more and more carefully.

Jiang Xia wondered if he should call them and remind them to be careful.

Traffic slows down, so you need to control your speed in time to avoid being rear-ended.

Jiang Xia thought about it for a while, but was afraid of disturbing Wu Zhou's driving, so he had to put the idea aside for the time being.

A note from the author:

Before driving, Jiang Xia had them ride in a car that made them feel safer, his intention being to put their minds at ease.

As he cautiously drove past the scene of the rear-end collision, he glanced at it.

Jiangxia: [Fear]

Zhan Lintian (slightly injured): [bursting into tears]

Wu Zhou's injuries were relatively minor, but Zhan Lintian's external injuries were more obvious because he was sitting in the back seat without a seatbelt (which is why he was thrown off his seat).

*

Jiangxia:......

Jiang Xia: You should all ride in my car, Orz. [Scared]

*

Wu Zhou couldn't say when he would develop clear, improper thoughts.

He had a very painful time when his younger brother's sweetheart was someone he loved in return; it was a two-way street.

Wu Ming has everything except for his father's love.

He wasn't short of money; his grandfather would always give him money.

So after he started dating Jiang Xia, he was very insecure for a while and kept asking Jiang Xia to prove herself.

For example, he really enjoys listening to Jiang Xia's soft voice...

Of course, Wu Zhou's favorite thing was to place his palm on Jiang Xia's fair abdomen.

Jiang Xia's waist was thin and slender. Only after he touched her abdomen did he guide Jiang Xia to place her hand on it as well.

With a little pressure, you can feel the marks inside.