Chapter 31 It wasn't enough; she was still covered in his scent. ...
Around 6 p.m., students began to arrive, and the entrance to the banquet hall remained chaotic.
Yin Xiao confirmed that the order for the camisole nightgown was successful before quietly exiting the link. She put away her phone, looked up, and her gaze fell on He Sen standing at the door.
"You finally agreed to come to the class reunion?" A strange voice suddenly rang out beside her, startling her.
Composing herself, she turned her head and recognized the girl with the big, wavy hair as someone she had seen before, "Jin Siya."
Jin Siya leaned against the table with her arms crossed, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Do you still remember me?"
"Um, sorry, I didn't recognize you last time we met."
Jin Siya shook her head indifferently, "What's the big deal? It's been three or four years since we last met, it's normal that you don't recognize me."
She smiled, glanced down at Yin Xiao's hand, and said, "This ring of yours is..."
"Wedding ring." Yin Xiao answered naturally, raising her hand to hold it up in front of her and turning it around.
Jin Siya's expression froze for a moment, then she quickly glanced back at the door and whispered, "Are you kidding me? Did Cen Yiting provoke you?"
"No, I'm already married," Yin Xiao explained gently.
Jin Siya was visibly flustered. She stepped forward and grabbed Yin Xiao's wrist, as if to examine the ring carefully. Her mouth was slightly open, but she was interrupted by the noise at the table before she could say anything.
Math teacher Jin Lin had just arrived. She had dyed her hair brown, was wearing a knitted shawl, and was standing in front of the table chatting with the students.
Yin Xiao immediately broke free from Jin Siya and walked towards the dining table. However, after chatting briefly with class monitor Xia Yu around Teacher Jin, she was pushed out of the way, and soon everyone was seated and starting to eat, so she had to give up.
Professor Jin came to Anlin to attend an academic seminar. He was short on time and had to leave before the gathering was over. Fortunately, Yin Xiao seized the opportunity to take a group photo and chat about their recent situations.
With the teacher no longer present, the students were visibly more relaxed. After they had almost finished eating, class monitor Xia Yu clamored for a game. He seemed to have been prepared, as he took out a spinning wheel and explained the rules while fiddling with the pointer.
Ten people participate in each round of the game, which is divided into three rounds. First, they draw lots to draw number identity cards, then they spin a wheel to select numbers. The person whose number corresponds to a penalty is drawn, and the person who fails to complete the penalty must drink alcohol.
Yin Xiao sat in her seat with a few cherry tomatoes in her hand, not intending to participate in the game. Her eyes darted around the room, eager to find an opportunity to explain things to He Sen. But suddenly, Jin Siya pulled her to the game area next door and stuffed a card into her hand.
"What number do you have?" Jin Siya asked, leaning over to look after she finished drawing the number card for her. "Six? I saw that He Sen also has a six. This is terrible, your fates are now intertwined."
"...It's not that bad, we might not even be drawn." Yin Xiao stared at the spinning wheel on the table, seemingly unconcerned, but silently praying that it wouldn't land on her; she was just there to fill a spot.
The slender pointer slowly slowed down, passing through nine and ten in turn, before returning to one, two, three...
"Six! Hahaha, I'm five! I was so close!" The square-faced boy next to him shouted gleefully, "Who's six? Who's the lucky one? That's so lucky!"
Yin Xiao's brows furrowed, and she stared at the number for a few seconds before finally resignedly raising her hand, "I am six."
“Me too.” He Sen, sitting on the opposite sofa, replied, tossing the lottery card he was holding onto the table.
"Two people! This punishment is going to be interesting..."
Jin Siya glanced at the chattering boy next to her, snatched the punishment cone from his hand, shook it up and down, and handed it to Yin Xiao, "You go first."
Yin Xiao surveyed her old classmates who were having a great time, then stopped worrying. She quickly pulled out a purple card, flipped it over, and calmly read out the requirements.
"M card: Send a message to the third most recently contacted person in your WeChat list, asking to borrow 333 yuan. The task is successful if the other party agrees."
Yin Xiao took out her phone from her pocket and opened her WeChat account.
"Jin Siya, count quickly, don't let Yin Xiao skip over anyone who might be inconvenient..." The square-faced boy was the most engrossed in the game, talking nonsense the whole time.
"Am I that kind of person?" Yin Xiao couldn't take it anymore and waved to the square-faced boy next to her whose name she didn't know. "Watch carefully, I'll point to it for you, one, two, three, this is it."
Yin Xiao tapped the screen lightly and heard the boy chuckle twice, "Yeah, yeah, yeah..."
She bent her fingers, held the phone up to her eyes, wanting to see which unlucky person it was, but the moment she saw the nickname, she couldn't hold back her smile and stopped moving.
Carter. A special note she made for Yi Zhiyan.
She's really lucky today...
Judging by the time, Yi Zhiyan is probably still in a meeting at Lu Wen's company and definitely doesn't have time to reply to her. When he's busy, he simply doesn't have time for WeChat. After all, when she added him on WeChat, he didn't reply until the afternoon of the next day.
It seems destined to fail.
Yin Xiao pursed her lips and, under the enthusiastic gazes of those around her, decisively sent the message.
[vI'm 333.]
"How long is considered a failure if there's no reply?" Jin Siya asked her worriedly.
Yin Xiao shrugged and said dismissively, "You decide."
"So... let He Sen draw all the punishment cards first, and if he hasn't responded after he's finished the punishment, then it's considered a failure?"
"Okay." Yin Xiao looked across and handed the lottery bucket to He Sen. "You draw first."
He Sen took the plastic bucket, and without shaking it a few more times, directly pulled out a red card.
"Red! Hahaha, Mu-ge, you're doomed! You pulled out the most insane one..." The square-faced boy jumped up excitedly again, shouting as he squeezed through the crowd to see, "Complete the cookie challenge with the classmate who was punished last time!"
Yin Xiao frowned subconsciously and glanced at the red card with suspicion.
"Here are the cookies." Class monitor Xia Yu pulled out a box of thumb-sized cookies from somewhere, took one out and held it up, "You two can bite as much as you want, leave as many centimeters as you like."
Yin Xiao didn't move. She slowly looked up at He Sen, waiting for him to give up the punishment. Giving up automatically was considered a failure, and the loser had to drink a row of dark beer on the table.
He Sen had a high alcohol tolerance. During the summer vacation after the college entrance examination, the two families had a meal together, and Yin Xiao watched as he downed a whole bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor) and then calmly settled the drunk elders.
He would rather drink than accept this inexplicable punishment.
"Are you waiting for him to say he's giving up the challenge?" Jin Siya suddenly leaned close to her ear, raised her hand to cover her mouth, and whispered, "He won't."
Yin Xiao's body stiffened, her eyelids trembled slightly, and her hands clenched a few times in the air, her palms becoming sweaty.
He Sen, who had been silent all along, finally made a move. He picked up a biscuit, walked to her side, raised his hand and held it between them, without saying a word, but the meaning couldn't be clearer.
The students around them couldn't contain themselves and started making a ruckus, with jokes coming one after another.
"Wait a minute, I don't..." Yin Xiao clenched her fist, turned her head to look at the circle of people surrounding her, and spoke without hesitation. Before she could finish speaking, she noticed the screen that had lit up out of the corner of her eye.
Yi Zhiyan replied.
Her brow relaxed, and she quickly picked up her phone to confirm.
[Transfer 3000.]
"My mission was a success." She flipped the screen outwards.
Cen Yiting, who wasn't participating in the game, suddenly squeezed through the crowd, "Spinning so many! Who is this? A friend, or a relative...?"
"Husband." Yin Xiao smiled and pretended not to hear the whispers and speculations around her, her tone light and frank, "I got married at the beginning of the year, this is my husband."
"You...you..." The square-faced boy, who was at the forefront of the gossip, froze, his eyes darting around, and he forced out three words through gritted teeth, "Just kidding!"
"This is a wedding ring, didn't you see it at all?" Yin Xiao ignored him and turned to her familiar classmates on the other side, feigning grievance and pouting, "Dear classmates, you didn't even say a single word of blessing..."
"Oh... Congratulations!"
May you have a long and happy marriage, and may you prosper!
"Happy wedding! When are you going to invite us to your wedding banquet?"
The atmosphere became lively again. Surrounded by others, Yin Xiao smiled and thanked them, secretly letting out a sigh of relief.
"You're the first married person in our class, right... So what's the punishment?" The class monitor glanced awkwardly at the box of cookies on the table and tried to smooth things over, "Don't do it."
"Games are games, but if you don't participate, you have to drink." Cen Yiting gestured to her right, "Besides, the person who's supposed to be punished hasn't said anything yet, He Sen, are you giving up?"
He Sen shook his head. "I didn't say I was giving up."
Yin Xiao paused for a moment, then chuckled. Without looking at He Sen, and without hesitation for even half a second, she walked to the table, picked up a bottle of dark beer, pulled the tab, and poured it into ten glasses in order.
"I give up."
The cool water slid down his throat, forcefully suppressing the anger swelling in his chest.
She tilted her head back, drinking one glass after another, her eyes expressionless.
Midway through, He Sen came over and grabbed her wrist, but she shook him off without hesitation.
"Need not."
Her eyes were dry, and she squinted, her tired gaze lingering on He Sen's face for a second.
His worried expression seemed genuine, but he had indeed just pushed her into the most hopeless situation.
The bond they'd shared since childhood prevented her from saying anything harsh; once these few drinks were finished, there was no need to talk anymore.
Clang.
Unexpectedly, the banquet hall door was pushed open, and several men in suits entered, carrying tall wine glasses.
Yin Xiao's gaze froze, and her swallowing motion slowed.
"Hu Jiaojiao, you actually have time to come?" The class monitor was the first to react, shouting as he rushed to the door and slammed a hammer on the shoulder of the boy in front.
"Get out of here, Xia Dayu, stay away from me. I'm not here to see you. I'm here to see..." The boy looked up anxiously.
Yin Xiao was caught off guard and met his gaze. Then she saw him grinning from ear to ear, a smile that looked somewhat familiar.
"Sister-in-law!" He ran up to her excitedly, about to say something, but then noticed the wine jar in her hand. His expression changed, and he turned to point at Xia Yu, "Xia Dayu, I booked this banquet hall for you, and this is how you thank me!"
Yin Xiao's memory was brought back by the word "sister-in-law," and she recognized the aggressive boy in front of her as Hu Jiao, Yi Zhiyan's younger brother.
The last time I saw him was at a school basketball game; he almost recognized me at school.
"Sister-in-law, don't drink anymore." Hu Jiao turned around and pulled her, his anger still simmering. It seemed he had already had a fight with Xia Yu. "What kind of bullshit game is this? Only games are fun. Advocating this kind of inappropriate punishment, I think he's up to no good."
Yin Xiao was taken aback by his imposing manner and forgot to loosen her grip on the beer can.
Hu Jiao turned around and pointed at Xia Yu, who had caught up with him, and yelled, "I promised you this place to have your class reunion, only saying you could have dinner with your teachers. Now the teachers are gone, and the meal is over, so get out of here! This is just a restaurant; if you want to play games, go somewhere else!"
"Hu Jiao, Hu Jiaojiao, Little Hu!" Xia Yu pleaded softly, "Whether I can stay at your restaurant, and for how long, isn't up to you... Half an hour, just half an hour. I've already said I can play until at least ten o'clock, so please help me this once! I promise I won't drink again!"
"...Just half an hour." Hu Jiao reminded Yin Xiao with concern, "We still need to drink. Call me if you want, I can hold my liquor."
The alcohol was taking effect, and Yin Xiao blinked sluggishly. She wanted to say a lot, but in the end she just smiled and said, "Thank you."
Hu Jiao didn't say anything more, patted Xia Yu hard, and told the staff who came in to leave together.
The wheel was still spinning, and the game had moved on to the next round. Xia Yu slumped his shoulders, put on a smile again, and turned to sit back down in a corner of the sofa.
Yin Xiao glanced back at the closed door, tossed the number card onto the table, grabbed her phone, and followed him out.
"Hu Jiao." She ran to the corner of the corridor and called out to the boy who was about to make a phone call.
"Sister-in-law?" Hu Jiao's eyes widened. "Are you going home? I'll take you. I was just about to call my brother and tell him not to come..."
"No." Seeing him about to dial, Yin Xiao hurriedly stepped forward and waved her hand. "I want to ask you to help me keep something a secret."
"What?" Hu Jiao stopped what he was doing.
"Don't tell your brother about me drinking here today."
"Huh? But..." Hu Jiao stammered, "My brother already knows."
Yin Xiao froze, moved her lips, and just as she uttered a sound, she saw a figure approaching from around the corner.
"Know what?"
Yi Zhiyan walked over to Hu Jiao, loosened his tie, lifted his eyelids, and casually tilted his head to ask him.
"Uh... I don't know, I don't know anything, bye-bye bro!" Hu Jiao shook his head vigorously, skillfully feigning ignorance, and with long strides, disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Yin Xiao was amused by the way he left in a blur, and the gloom of the night was swept away. She looked away and stared at Yi Zhiyan's cold face, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Your brother acts like he's seen a great demon whenever he sees you..."
The rich scent of ebony suddenly filled her nostrils, and the slightly bitter aroma silenced her unspoken words.
Yi Zhiyan bent down and hugged her, holding her shoulders tightly, his arms tightening little by little, his chin resting on her neck.
Yin Xiao paused for a second, then subconsciously raised her hand and gently placed it on his waist.
"What's wrong? Did the meeting not go well? Or..."
"I missed you, my wife." Yi Zhiyan's voice was light and airy, yet every word reached her ears.
Yin Xiao felt a little uncomfortable and replied softly, "Me too."
The woody aroma mingled with each other's breaths, growing stronger and stronger.
Yi Zhiyan turned his head to the side, and Yin Xiao's hair happened to brush against his nose. The faint fragrance still couldn't mask the unknown smell of smoke and alcohol.
Not enough, still not enough...
He thought that she smelled of him.
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Author's note: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, everyone!
There's sweetness in the next chapter! [Let me see!]
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