Chapter 30 After all, we've been quite intimate before.
About twenty minutes later, Xu Yuewei carefully carried a square, dark blue box and left Yan Yijun's house.
The box was covered with soft fuzz, and inside was a lotus jade carving, wrapped in special foam. It was like opening the box and then putting it back in.
When she opened the car door, Zhuang Fengrui helped her with it.
Xu Yuewei first put the things on the passenger seat, then couldn't help but ask:
"Senior, when you told the teacher we were coming to visit, didn't she say that someone else should come at this time?"
During her hospitalization, Yan Yijun declined all visits from the outside world. After her discharge, many people will surely come to visit her.
But Jiang Shiyan isn't the kind of person who just shows up with gifts randomly; he'll definitely arrange a time in advance. And Teacher Yan isn't so forgetful as to forget things.
He admitted that he deliberately chose today, but it was such a coincidence that the timing also happened to be the same.
Zhuang Fengrui replied, "No, maybe Teacher Yan thought he would talk about Guanshan, so she deliberately arranged for us to meet. It would save time, and she could get some rest earlier."
Given Teacher Yan's style, that's certainly possible.
Seeing her conflicted expression, Zhuang Fengrui's eyes behind his glasses flashed with understanding: "You think we betrayed you?"
"No, no..." When she felt guilty, she easily revealed her weakness, so she simply and confidently pushed all the blame onto Jiang Shiyan, "He said something that made me misunderstand!"
After saying that, she apologized again: "I'm sorry, senior brother, I didn't mean to hide it from you. I didn't expect to run into him again, it's just..."
Zhuang Fengrui, unusually adopting the airs of a senior, earnestly comforted her, "It's nothing serious, you're still so young."
A simple, understated remark caused her eyes to uncontrollably well up with tears.
Xu Yuewei blinked gently, and after a brief moment of calm, she smiled at him.
Saying thank you would be too formal. She tugged at Zhuang Fengrui's down jacket sleeve and said, "Senior brother, I will definitely miss you."
Once in the car, Xu Yuewei didn't rush to start the engine. She fastened her seatbelt with one hand and swiped the screen with her other left hand, finding "Guan Shan Pan Mingxuan" in the list.
Xu Yuewei: [Hello, Teacher Pan, I have something I'd like to return to Teacher Jiang Shiyan. When would be a convenient time to visit your studio?]
After sending the message, she started her car and stopped at a red light with a long countdown timer. She then checked her phone for replies.
Pan Mingxuan: [Tomorrow, anytime after 2 PM is fine. For the day after tomorrow, I need to confirm the time with Professor Jiang. May I ask what it is?]
Xu Yuewei: [Does that mean Mr. Jiang won't be at the studio before 2 PM tomorrow? I don't need to meet him in person, but if possible, I'd like you to pass this on to me. Anyone at the studio is fine.]
Pan Mingxuan: [We always have people here, so how about 13 o'clock?]
Xu Yuewei replied "OK".
Having learned from her previous experience, she didn't go overboard by asking him to keep Jiang Shiyan's plans a secret. After all, the time had already been confirmed, and Jiang Shiyan wouldn't change his work schedule over something like this.
She never expected that Pan Mingxuan would cut off their chat window, open the "Workers Eating Without a Boss" group chat, and unleash a torrent of abuse.
Diligent Secretary's Message: [Urgent! Urgent! FBI WARNING! My sister-in-law is coming tomorrow!!!]
Lonely, Cherry Blossom Rain: [Which sister-in-law? Whose sister-in-law?]
Diligent Little Secretary Crazy: [Brother Jiang's sister-in-law.]
Diligent Little Secretary Crazy: [Pshaw, Jiang Ge said he's currently pursuing that girl.]
My dad's dad is called grandpa: [Wow!]
The diligent secretary lit a cigarette: "To be honest, she almost became my brother's wife."
Loneliness, Cherry Blossom Rain: [Let me explain why I've been promoted to a higher generation.]
A string of identical replies followed, flooding the screen.
Diligent Little Secretary: [Stop messing around! I think she means she doesn't want to run into Brother Jiang. What should we do? Should we keep it from him? We're like magpies bridging the gap right now, can't I bear all this alone?]
*
At 1 p.m. on the second day, Xu Yuewei arrived at the Neon Studio building on time, following the location Jiang Shiyan had given her last time.
She stepped on the brake in front of the barrier gate and rolled down the window to tell the security guard, but the barrier gate was pressed up when she had only rolled it halfway down.
She nodded and smiled politely at the doorman through the glass, drove in, and parked her car under a low wall surrounded by tall trees. She then walked to the door with her things.
I pushed open the door and peeked inside, but didn't see anyone at the front desk.
She had been here once before, so she was familiar with the environment. She glanced at the space under the stairs, where several cardboard boxes were piled up, with a promotional picture of a hot pot printed on the bottom box.
Do music studios need to buy this kind of pot?
Xu Yuewei tentatively took a few steps along the corridor. All the doors to the rooms were closed, but she gradually smelled the aroma of hot pot.
She hesitated before greeting him, "Hello, is anyone here?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard a strange noise coming from the space extending beyond the corner ahead. A few seconds later, Pan Mingxuan's figure suddenly appeared as he wiped his mouth and jogged, startling her.
He was even more surprised: "Teacher Xu, why did you come so early?"
Xu Yuewei was taken aback by the question and began to doubt herself. She looked down to confirm the message: "Isn't it just one o'clock in the afternoon?"
She showed him the screen.
Pan Mingxuan looked away, feeling guilty and embarrassed, but being a seasoned veteran, he clapped his hands and began to apologize:
"I'm so sorry, I sent it at the wrong time. I meant 3 PM, and I typed 13 instead of 15..."
Xu Yuewei was taken aback: "But didn't we agree to meet before 2 o'clock?"
Pan Mingxuan: "Huh? Really?"
Xu Yuewei glanced at the screen.
Carefully considering Pan Mingxuan's reply, "We always have people here, so how about 13 o'clock?", it didn't directly answer her earlier question, "Will Teacher Jiang not be in the studio before 2 PM tomorrow?"
Xu Yuewei: "..."
Over these few encounters, Pan Mingxuan always gave her the feeling of being extremely busy and carrying heavy burdens for his boss. Looking at his dark circles, she couldn't bear to utter a single word of reproach.
Her heart softened: "No, it's me who's causing you trouble."
Xu Yuewei was carrying a white plastic bag containing a box with jade carvings inside. She put the bag over the box to prevent it from falling.
"Please give this to him; he'll know what it is once he sees it."
Pan Mingxuan waved his hand, refusing to accept it: "Oh dear, my hands are all oily and dirty. I was having hot pot with them, haha... Since you're already here, why don't you give it to Teacher Jiang yourself?"
Xu Yuewei was taken aback again: "So he was here?"
"Ah...yes, yes."
Pan Mingxuan shrugged, his smile strained. "Shall I escort you upstairs?"
Xu Yuewei glanced down at the bag, then looked at Pan Mingxuan. There was an unidentified substance, which looked like sesame oil, on his right hand, and there was still some red oil on the corner of his mouth that he hadn't wiped off.
I'm really worried that if I just hand it over to him like this, he might open it while he's eating and his hands are dirty.
"Alright then... I'm sorry to have kept you from eating."
Pan Mingxuan said it was nothing and led her up the stairs: "The elevator is broken and hasn't been fixed yet, let's take the stairs."
The stairs were a bit narrow. Pan Mingxuan walked in front, Xu Yuewei behind. Their footsteps echoed hollowly for a few steps before Pan Mingxuan remembered to add that most common Chinese greeting:
"Has Teacher Xu eaten yet?"
"Not yet, I ate late this morning, so I'm not hungry yet."
As soon as she finished speaking, she stepped onto the second-floor platform with one foot and watched as Pan Mingxuan, who had just turned the corner ahead, stopped.
She quickened her pace to catch up, and when she looked up, Jiang Shiyan was standing on the platform above them, more than a dozen steps higher.
Jiang Shiyan had already stepped down the stairs with his right leg. In this posture, he slightly hunched his back, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Unlike when they met before, he had taken off his suit and tie, put on a suede jacket, left it open to reveal a black inner layer, and wore dark blue wide-leg pants, creating a British retro mixed with American casual style.
His bangs were a bit long, so he swept them to his temples, leaving a shorter section sparsely covering his forehead, giving him a lazy, youthful look.
Like him in the past.
Xu Yuewei was momentarily stunned.
The next second, Pan Mingxuan's clumsy figure hopped around in the silent exchange of their gazes.
He strode forward and explained to Jiang Shiyan, his voice so loud it seemed he was speaking to Xu Yuewei.
"Teacher Xu contacted me saying she wanted to bring you something. I originally wanted to arrange to meet her at 3 pm, but I accidentally typed it as 1 pm, and that's how she came. I thought you were still taking a nap at this time, so I didn't tell you. What a coincidence that we ran into each other."
As he continued speaking, Pan Mingxuan blinked his eyes more and more frequently.
Jiang Shiyan has a habit of taking a midday nap and is grumpy when he wakes up; the taboo against sleeping before 2 PM stems from this.
But Pan Mingxuan repeatedly told him not to sleep today, and to come downstairs at one o'clock, saying that he had arranged a birthday surprise for a new employee and was going to film a video, and asked him not to miss it.
"..."
Jiang Shiyan raised his hand and combed his bangs twice. His large, bony hand covered most of his face as he glanced sideways at Pan Mingxuan.
Someone's figured it out.
Someone has been fooled.
Pan Mingxuan walked backwards down the stairs: "Then I'll go back to eat first, they'll probably have all the hot pot meat gone. By the way, Brother Jiang, after you ask Teacher Xu to deliver the things, please don't chat for too long, she hasn't eaten yet."
After saying that, he quickly slipped away.
Natural light streamed in through the windows on the corridor platform, casting a dazzling golden hue across the floor.
They stared at each other without moving.
Jiang Shiyan looked away first, then turned and walked upstairs: "Come with me."
"Wait a minute." Xu Yuewei called out to him, handing him the plastic bag. "I'm here to return the jade carving for Teacher Yan. She doesn't want to accept something so valuable. Here, take it. I'm leaving."
Jiang Shiyan put his hand on his neck and tilted his head: "I just woke up and I don't feel any energy."
"?"
He cleverly deflected her criticism, leaving Xu Yuewei speechless, her brain short-circuiting. The harmful effects of irregular eating habits were on full display at this moment.
Jiang Shiyan had already climbed up to a place where he could no longer be seen.
She hesitated for a moment, then followed.
The woman wore a beige lantern-sleeved sweater and carefully carried a bag as if it were a lantern. With her other hand, she slightly lifted her skirt, which had a gentle, light purple hue. It was a practical and everyday piece, but it was longer than knee-length, making it difficult to move her legs.
The studio has four floors. Another key collaborator, Mr. Lu, is quite old, so to avoid any ominous connotations, the third floor was changed to a two-and-a-half-story building, and the fourth floor is now the third floor.
Jiang Shiyan had only one set of steps left to reach the top. He stopped on the platform at the corner between the second and a half and the third floor, leaning against the wall, and mentally timing himself.
As the count progressed, the difference between one second and half a second gradually became blurred.
"Why are you walking so slowly?" He lazily lifted his eyes and looked at the woman who was leaning half her body against him. "Are you afraid I'll kiss you here?"
Xu Yuewei's brow twitched, and she froze instantly.
I heard him chuckle indistinctly.
"After all, we've been quite intimate in the past."
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Author's Note: The synopsis is being retracted! Hooray! [droopy-eared rabbit head]
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