Chapter 33. [Second Update] It's hard to guarantee she won't see something she shouldn't...
There was no need for Wan Nian to call them one by one; the group of people completely ignited the atmosphere. The driver, who was lying in bed playing on his phone, quickly put on his cotton-padded coat and walked out of the room with great energy. Wen Xue was stunned for a while when she saw this scene. He Yan withdrew his gaze, looked at her again, and said in a very calm tone, "Let's go get some late-night snacks."
She was content when she sat alone on the sofa in her room.
And the feeling I have right now is called happiness.
Because nothing here has changed. The furnishings are the same, Nana and the others are the same, and He Yan is the same.
She turned off the lights, grabbed the keys, and followed him excitedly through the corridor. The group was quite large, and the old town was full of life. Even at ten o'clock, there were still many food stalls and barbecue stands nearby that would stay open until dawn.
It's very close, there's no need to drive, so I'll just walk there.
It was He Yan's habit to let Wen Xue walk in front, and everyone else followed suit with smiles.
Nana linked arms with Wenxue. The two always had a lot to talk about when they met. Suddenly, Nana turned around and stole a glance, then leaned closer to Wenxue and said with a suppressed laugh, "It's so funny. I feel like we're the bosses and they're all our little brothers."
The two of them walked ahead.
He Yan was accompanied by Wan Nian and Wang Yuan, followed by the other drivers.
Wen Xue chuckled, but He Yan, who was a few steps behind her, caught the sound of her laughter carried by the night breeze. He stared at her back suspiciously for a long time.
There are many barbecue restaurants on this street, but this group of people usually frequents only one or two. The owner was standing on the barbecue grill sprinkling cumin on the skewers. Through the smoke, he saw He Yan and laughed, "What a coincidence! I was just wondering why Mr. Wu was drinking alone. Turns out you guys were in the back."
After saying that, he gestured with his chin, "President Wu is sitting down."
As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Yuejiang bent down and came out from inside to urge the barbecue skewers to be served with the drinks. When he looked up, good heavens, they were all his own people!
He glanced around, responding to everyone's greetings, and finally looked at He Yan with a half-smile.
He Yan looked calm.
"Brother Yuejiang." Wen Xue was being pulled inside by Nana, and as she passed Wu Yuejiang, she called out softly.
Wu Yuejiang smiled and nodded, "Go in quickly."
Once everyone else had gone inside, he swiftly swept over with a whirlwind kick, grabbed He Yan's shoulder, and cursed, "Didn't you say you wouldn't come no matter who invited you?"
"So it's my treat."
"Oh."
Wu Yuejiang had already seen through him. "You're especially happy that your sister is back, aren't you?"
This is not surprising; it was the same when He Heng was around. A young man just starting university is no different from a wild horse, especially since he has a girlfriend. He's busy with classes, adapting to university life, and dating. After a semester, his older brothers can count the number of times they see him on one hand.
However, every time he came over, He Yan didn't say anything, but he was very happy inside.
"They've gone in."
He Yan smiled, didn't answer the question, easily let him go, and walked straight inside. When he habitually found Wen Xue's figure, his expression paused slightly.
There were quite a few people, and since one table wasn't enough, they were divided into several tables.
There were six people at the table where Wen Xue was sitting. To her left was Nana, and to her right was Wang Yuan, who was performing a peacock-like act of opening a bottle cap for her.
Wang Yuan didn't consider himself shameless; he would never knowingly pursue Wen Xue knowing she had a boyfriend. But if he could immediately and rationally withdraw, it wouldn't be called liking her. The body is often more honest than the mind, and he still couldn't help but want to get closer to her.
The bottle cap fell to the ground, and he happily turned around and bent down to pick it up, when unexpectedly, he and He Yan made eye contact.
He saw his beloved and respected Brother Yan frowning, scrutinizing him with a strange look.
Wang Yuan: "..."
He immediately recalled the scene at the karaoke bar before the New Year and instantly understood that Brother Yan was targeting him. He stopped picking up the bottle cap, hurriedly got up, gave up his seat, and said sullenly, "Brother, you sit down. I'll go to Boss Wu's table. He wants me to drink with him, haha."
He Yan hummed in agreement.
She glanced at him a couple more times before pulling out a chair and sitting down as if nothing had happened.
The others at the table were discussing what to order, making a lot of noise, and no one noticed this inconspicuous little incident.
Wang Yuan opened several bottles of soda, and gave Wen Xue a Coke. The bubbly bottle had a straw in it. She was about to drink it when she caught a glimpse of He Yan beside her. He seemed to be deep in thought, with a cold and serious expression. Had something happened?
She took a deep breath, worried that drinking cola late at night might be a landmine. After a few seconds of thought, she obediently pushed the soda towards him.
He Yan looked at her, held the bottle with one hand, and pushed it back to her, saying, "It's okay, drink it."
She took the soda and, while drinking her cola through the straw, secretly glanced at him. Unintentionally, their eyes met amidst the noise.
"What's wrong?"
What would you like to drink?
The two spoke at the same time.
He Yan didn't want to drink anything, but when he met her bright eyes, he unconsciously changed his mind and said, "Cola, please."
"I'll go get it."
Wen Xue got up and quickly opened the air-conditioned cabinet that wasn't powered on. She grabbed a bottle of cola and came back. While everyone else was ordering food, she tried to open the bottle cap, mimicking Wang Yuan's earlier actions, despite He Yan's puzzled gaze.
It couldn't be opened the first time.
She wasn't discouraged and wanted to try again when a hand snatched the soda from her hand. Looking sideways, He Yan said calmly, "I'll do it."
Seeing her barely concealed curiosity, he chuckled, then quickly composed himself, deliberately slowing his movements as he deftly and skillfully opened the bottle cap.
“Go get another bottle,” he said.
"Huh?" Wen Xue asked, "What are you taking?"
"casual."
After Nana and the drivers at the table ordered their food, they were stunned when they noticed several open bottles of soda on the table. "..."
Clatter—
With a short, crisp sound, Wen Xue opened the bottle cap again. Before she could even show a triumphant smile, she noticed that everyone at the table was looking at her. Only then did she belatedly realize that she had opened three or four bottles of soda in just a short while.
He Yan, who indulged her, said nonchalantly, "What are you looking at? The food has already been ordered."
"Oh...we've ordered!" everyone said in unison.
"Don't worry," He Yan reassured her, "They can drink it all, no matter how much you order. It won't be a waste."
Wan Nian and the others exchanged bewildered glances. Brother, no…
Nana covered her mouth and chuckled, "Alright, alright, I'll drink you until you're stuffed."
On a rare relaxing evening, the group chatted and laughed. Wen Xue munched on a roasted corn cob, listening intently as they shared anecdotes from their sports car adventures.
She didn't talk much, but no one could ignore her. Wu Yuejiang, halfway through his drink, remembered his business and leaned over to ask loudly, "Little sister, didn't your brother say you found a tutoring job and have to teach students on Fridays?"
"Yes, it seems like something came up at her home, but I still have to go on Sunday."
Another driver, who had drunk a few bottles of alcohol and was a bit tipsy, chuckled and said, "Your sister is a top student; maybe you can tutor my child sometime."
Nana almost spat out her drink, "Please, have mercy, you don't even have a girlfriend!"
"You still have to have dreams."
"Perhaps your child will be a top student in the future?"
"That's not a dream, that's an unrealistic fantasy."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Wu Yuejiang laughed, raised his beer glass, and gestured for Wen Xue to toast him from afar. His voice was hearty, "If it weren't for my little sister, it definitely wouldn't be this lively today. Come on, let me toast you!"
With him as a role model, everyone present clamored to toast her and clink glasses.
Wen Xue's cheeks flushed, and she agreed to everything.
Just as she caught her breath, He Yan, who hadn't said much, suddenly held out a Coke bottle. She was taken aback and looked at him. He was resting his head on one hand, with a faint smile on his face. She immediately understood what he meant, and her lips curled up as she touched the bottle to his.
…
The table was piled high with bowls, chopsticks, plates, soda bottles, skewers, and soup. Wenxue wasn't paying attention while talking to Nana and almost knocked over a plate of food. The soup spilled down the disposable plastic tablecloth, and by the time she realized what had happened, the hem of her clothes was covered in red oil.
In her panic, she rushed to the bathroom to salvage her clothes.
The restrooms here are rather basic. Even the hand soap on the counter has been diluted countless times with water, so it doesn't lather at all. Frustrated, she hung her head and rubbed her hands against the red oil stain until her palms were almost red, but with little effect.
"Give it a try."
He Yan came over carrying a bottle of dish soap. "Nana asked the boss for it. She said it's useful."
Wen Xue was overjoyed and quickly took it, squeezed some onto her fingertips, and continued to scrub vigorously. He Yan stood by and watched. He couldn't tell if it was clean or not, but the wet area on the hem of her clothes was getting bigger and bigger.
"Stop making a fuss."
He stopped him in a deep voice, "It's no big deal, we can buy another one if it gets dirty."
Wen Xue found such words particularly hateful at this moment. She automatically ignored the sarcastic remarks, buried her head and rubbed and kneaded silently, as if she were angry with someone. Her hands moved so fast that they almost left afterimages.
He Yan was often helpless against her stubbornness.
You can't curse, and you can't say anything.
After a moment, she finally stopped and carefully examined the hem of her clothes. She relaxed her shoulders, and in the dim light, she could still vaguely see some marks, but it was much better than at the beginning.
As she was racking her brains for any other way to remove the stains, He Yan, who stood in front of her like a wall or a towering mountain, finally spoke after a long pause, "Take off your clothes."
"What?"
"Don't you know how cold it is outside?" He raised his hand and took off his coat, his brows furrowed. "Take it off, put on my coat, don't catch a cold."
She paused, as if she didn't understand him, and took a half step back. "But—"
“It’s not dirty,” he said, softening his tone. “It’s clean.”
"Give me your clothes, then what will you wear? No, no, absolutely not." She shook her head.
"Stop talking nonsense." He impatiently shoved his coat into her arms, his voice low. "I can withstand the cold better than you."
Wang Yuan rushed to the restroom and saw someone standing at the door. He had drunk quite a bit and was a little dizzy, seeing everything in a blur. He opened his eyes wide and recognized He Yan's back. He grinned and mumbled, "Brother Yan, what are you doing here?"
He Yan turned around upon hearing the sound.
As Wang Yuan walked over with unsteady steps, he reached out to stop him, stood sideways, and blocked Wang Yuan's view with his tall and broad body. "Nothing much, just came out for a smoke."
"Okay, I'll put it in—"
water.
Before he could finish speaking, He Yan interrupted him sternly: "Stop talking nonsense and go inside right now!"
Wang Yuan was stunned by his shout, "Brother?"
Why is he so fierce? What did he do wrong?!
Fortunately, it was late at night and the light was dim. Wen Xue, wearing He Yan's black coat, was hidden in the dim light and shadow. With her tall figure covering her, even a sober person might not be able to spot her immediately, let alone the half-drunk Wang Yuan.
He didn't notice that He Yan was only wearing a sweater on his upper body, nor did he notice Wen Xue's presence.
Wen Xue recognized the voice as Wang Yuan's and wanted to see what it was, but He Yan turned his head and stared at her sharply, warning her with his eyes not to make a sound.
She looked puzzled, but she pursed her lips and swallowed her words.
He Yan's expression softened slightly. She didn't know what absurd things some men would do when they were drunk. When people need to use the restroom, they lose all manners when drunk. She couldn't even guarantee that Wang Yuan wouldn't just unbuckle his belt at the bathroom door the next second.
Although he would definitely kick Wang Yuan when he was unbuckling his belt, there was no guarantee that she wouldn't see something she shouldn't.
"If you don't go in now, you're paying for this."
Wang Yuan shuddered in fright and dashed into the bathroom.
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