Chapter 5, Section 005. Why is their lonely Yan Ge with a young woman...?
Wen Xue looked at the bowl of chicken soup with some difficulty, but didn't say anything. Holding the bowl with both hands, she obediently took a few sips under He Yan's gaze. Even though her taste buds weren't fully awakened, her tongue could still taste how delicious the soup was. The temperature was a bit hot, which was perfect for drinking in winter, and it warmed her stomach after she ate it.
"It's delicious." She smiled faintly.
He Yan breathed a sigh of relief. "The chicken soup here is very famous. There are even restaurant owners who come here specifically to buy her recipe. I've tried it, but it's not as good as Sister Mei's own soup."
This soup is made with plenty of ingredients; the hens aren't fed commercial feed, but are raised on a farm eating rice and insects.
Simmer over low heat for several hours, and at the end just add a little salt to taste great.
Wen Xue drank the soup and slowly ate the chicken leg. Just as He Yan was about to add more soup and meat to her bowl, she hurriedly said, "No, I really can't eat anymore, I'm so full."
She barely managed to swallow the last few bites of meat.
“Okay.” He Yan put down the soup spoon. “There’s still half a pot left. It would be a waste to throw it away. We’ll take it with us later.”
Although he spoke in a straightforward manner, he looked at her as he spoke, seeking her opinion. His idea was simple: chicken soup was nourishing, and seeing that she liked it, he decided to pack it up and take it home for dinner or a late-night snack.
"Okay." He Yan wasn't picky about food. He ate the braised fish and cabbage on the table with relish and soon added more rice to his bowl.
Wen Xue hadn't paid attention to him at first. After she finished eating, she began to clear her mind, looking at every plant and tree in the yard. Her gaze was not focused and wandered around. Finally, it inadvertently settled on He Yan's face and she noticed that he had also lost a lot of weight. She remembered that last Spring Festival, when he came out of the train station, he looked tired but was actually full of vigor. Now, there was an inescapable melancholy between his brows.
She thought that perhaps she was too weak. He was clearly much, much more grief-stricken than she was, yet he was still able to pull himself together. That was truly remarkable.
"Want some more?"
He Yan felt her gaze, looked up, and thought she wanted to eat. "Sister Mei's fish is delicious."
Wen Xue wasn't hungry at first, but seeing him eat two bowls in a row, she nodded as if possessed, "Okay."
But she learned her lesson and didn't ask him for help. She figured if he were to serve the rice, it would pile up like a small mountain.
She only ate a small half bowl, and listened to him mix the fish soup with the rice, along with the sweet and delicious cabbage, and actually finished it all.
…
The consequence of overeating was that when she got back into the car, as the car bumped along the road, she became increasingly sleepy. Unable to resist the drowsiness, her head started nodding, and then she fell asleep with her head tilted to the side.
He Yan occasionally glanced at her, wanting to wake her up. After all, it was winter, and it was easy to catch a cold while sleeping in the car. But when he opened his mouth, he caught a glimpse of the bluish tinge that her curled eyelashes couldn't cover, and he swallowed his words. He could only slow down the car and look around through the windshield, following the sun so that the warm afternoon sunlight could fully envelop her.
Finally, the car stopped in a parking lot near the park, where the wind carried a warm breeze.
In winter, the temperature difference between day and night is large. After nightfall, the wind is biting cold, but the temperature is very comfortable during the day. At this time, some people take off their cotton-padded coats and take a walk around the lake.
Wen Xue hadn't slept for long, only about half an hour, but when she groggily opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the shimmering lake not far from the window, sparkling with colors like jewels. Then she heard children's voices; it turned out to be young parents blowing bubbles with their two daughters. Finally, she heard a deep, slightly hoarse male voice—
"Awake? Are you cold?"
She slowly turned her head to look at He Yan. He had sharp eyebrows and a buzz cut, his left arm was casually resting on the steering wheel, and his right hand was holding a phone. He was only wearing a charcoal gray sweater. Where was his coat? She was already a bit slow to react, and having just woken up, she belatedly realized that his coat was draped over her.
"I'm not cold." She quickly returned his coat to him.
He Yan pointed to the other side of the lake, "See? Go down and take a stroll. There should be a vending machine there. Buy me two bottles of water."
Wen Xue followed his gaze and replied, "Mm."
As she stepped out of the car, a gentle breeze caressed her face and ruffled her hair. As she walked further along the lakeside path, sunlight streamed through the dappled shadows of the trees. She instinctively turned her head and saw a black jeep parked a dozen meters away, looking rather dusty.
Inside the car, He Yan seemed to have been watching her the whole time. When she turned around, he raised his hand and made a "go ahead" gesture.
Even though they were so far apart, she still replied, "Okay."
When Wenxue woke up, she was still a bit cold when she got off the bus, but she warmed up after walking for a while. Soon she saw the vending machine He Yan had mentioned and bought two bottles of mineral water. The weather was nice, and there were many people in the park. Perhaps because she had taken a nap, she felt surprisingly not so tired, which was a rare occurrence for her.
-
When they set off again and arrived at the tenement building where He Yan was renting, it was already 4:30 pm.
Wen Xue followed him into the building, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, as if she had returned to her childhood. Back then, her parents' factory dormitory was just like this, with a corridor running through it and connecting many rooms. Now, not only in the new city, but even in the old city, this style of tenement buildings has been demolished, and there are very few of them left.
“I know some people live here.” He Yan walked ahead with his suitcase, carrying it with ease. “Most of them are couples, and they’re all very nice. I live downstairs from you, so just call out if you need anything.”
Wen Xue looked at the peeling walls and the uneven steps worn down by footsteps, finding it all quite strange. Just as she was wondering if the rent here was cheaper than elsewhere, the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs interrupted her thoughts.
The young woman in the woolen skirt hadn't even reached their floor yet, but the rich scent of her perfume wafted into their nostrils long before she did.
"ah!"
The young woman stopped abruptly. With the year-end approaching, everyone was distracted from work. She had taken a shortcut today, clocking out at four o'clock and coming home. She dressed herself up nicely, planning to go to the nearby night market to eat and stroll around after her boyfriend returned from picking up his car.
To make matters worse, her boss caught her red-handed. What kind of bad luck is that?
She was on the verge of tears, "Brother Yan..."
Sure enough, He Yan looked her up and down. "You didn't come to work? You skipped work?"
"Brother Yan..." the woman clutched her bag strap helplessly, "Um, um—"
She then noticed Wen Xue behind He Yan and thought she was hallucinating. Otherwise, why would their lonely Brother Yan be with a young girl?
"Hey? Brother Yan, what's this??"
He Yan stopped pursuing the matter of her leaving early and nodded, "Perfect, you can help her tidy up the house."
Seeing that the other person was in a hurry to leave, Wen Xue said softly, "No need, there's not much stuff, I can handle it by myself."
"No, no, no, you can't do it, you need me!"
Without a word, the young woman took the blanket from He Yan's arm and hugged it to her chest, smiling as she said, "Let me introduce myself first. My name is Zhao Na, but everyone calls me Nana. What's yours?"
"Wen Xue, Wen as in hearing, Xue as in snowfall."
"Wow, you heard it was snowing, and then you were born, right?"
Wen Xue smiled and said, "I think so."
"very nice!"
The three of them entered the room that the cleaning service had cleaned. It was not large, only a dozen square meters, and had been partitioned. The walls were simple white, and apart from an iron-framed bed and a simple wardrobe, there was nothing else.
He Yan looked around and called out to Nana in a deep voice. Nana understood immediately and replied, "Brother Yan, I will definitely get everything sorted out for her. You can rest assured that I can handle things well!"
"OK."
He Yan raised his hand to look at his watch, "Is your General Manager Wu still in the company?"
"Yes, yes, I'm here!"
He Yan shifted his gaze from the watch face to Wen Xue's face, pondered for a few seconds, and said, "I have to go to the company. I'll probably be back late. Call me directly if anything comes up. If I don't answer, call me a few more times."
Wen Xue nodded gently, "Okay."
Nana's eyes darted around, too busy to keep up. She kept glancing at He Yan and Wen Xue, almost unable to contain her curiosity and asking questions. But when she saw the boss's serious face, she reluctantly shut her mouth.
He Yan: "I'm leaving now."
Wen Xue hummed in agreement.
Nana, with her sharp ears and keen eyesight, made sure He Yan had come downstairs. She ran to the corridor, held onto the railing, and looked down. Seeing him walk out of the apartment building and get into his car, she patted her chest and muttered to herself, "That scared me to death."
…
The Jeep engine was quite loud; Wu Yuejiang could hear it even from his office. He put the printed contract down and tossed it onto the desk opposite him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw He Yan's tall figure approaching and said, "Where have you been all afternoon? I called you but you didn't answer."
"Didn't I reply to your message? I was busy."
“I didn’t have time to message you.” Wu Yuejiang put down her pen and looked at him suspiciously. “Something’s not right with you. Where did you go?”
The day before yesterday afternoon, he noticed that He Yan was acting strangely, clearly appearing absent-minded.
They completely disappeared yesterday and today.
This should have been a wake-up call for him. A few months ago, He Yan had gone through a period of depression, and one day he even tried to transfer all his shares to him at a low price. He was so angry that he punched He Yan, losing all his manners and composure. He had to make a tough statement: if anyone dared to back down, they could forget about being brothers. Only then did He Yan give up the idea.
Could it be that he went to the temple a few days ago and got all disheartened and thought about becoming a monk again?
"I went to the city."
He Yan pulled out a chair and sat down, casually flipping through the contract. "There's something I need to tell you. I brought someone with me. I'll assign Sister Cai's work to her, and I'll pay her salary. You don't need to worry about it."
Wu Yuejiang: "..."
Sure, as long as it's not a temple, going to America is fine.
He pushed up his glasses. "Who?"
"Snowy Scent".
He Yan remembered something very important, picked up the landline on the table and dialed a number. As soon as the call was connected, he frowned and asked, "Where's the heater I asked you to buy yesterday?"
Wu Yuejiang is still processing the impact of the name "Wenxue".
Suddenly I heard "heater" again, and I looked over in surprise.
Wang Yuan's voice was loud on the other end of the phone, and even Wu Yuejiang could clearly hear him shouting, "I bought it, I bought it, bro! I'm picking out a hot water bottle, it's so cute and fluffy, I tried it on, and it's really warm to hold in my hands! Oh, and the shopkeeper said they also have foot warmers, do you want one?"
He Yan reluctantly moved the microphone away slightly. "Buy it."
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