Chapter 56 The Button That Lily Pulled Off
Xiang Yun looked down and saw that Xu Songning seemed to be staring at his collar, her eyes darting around, lost in thought, and not responding to his words.
His fingers rested on the second button of her collar, his long, slender fingers with distinct knuckles and perfectly trimmed nails. As he touched the button, Xu Songning's throat tightened, as if those hands were caressing her chin.
"What's wrong? The buttons are so ugly, can't you hear me?"
"It's not bad. I was just wondering where the original button went?" Xu Songning looked up at him, her eyes alluring.
Xiang Yun was captivated by her glance, and following her words, he inevitably thought of the scene that night when his button was ripped off, and then of the mole on Xu Songning's back.
The atmosphere in the elevator instantly became lively.
"It was probably pulled off by the cat." Xiang Yun tugged at his tie, loosening it a little to breathe. The fabric clung to his neck, making him feel uncomfortable.
Xu Songning pretended not to understand, "Huh? Is it the cat in your profile picture?"
"Yes, Wanzi looks very well-behaved, but she's actually quite naughty. When she's angry, you can't even catch her," Xiang Yun replied calmly.
"Are cat claws that sharp? They can even cut through needles and thread."
"Yes, if you have a cat, you have to be careful not to get scratched by its claws."
"It's called meatball?"
"Yes, it also has a sister named Hotpot, both of which are kept by my sister. Would you like to see them?" Xiang Yun changed the subject, trying to cover up the topic of how the cat's claws had ripped off his clothes buttons.
"I want to see it." Xu Songning laughed. Oh dear, Wanzi, whom I've never met before, you've really gone to a lot of trouble taking the blame for your sister. When I see you again, I'll definitely feed you a few more cat treats.
“My sister will be bringing them to Shanghai next month, and I’ll take you to see them,” Xiang Yun said.
"Okay. By the way, what about calico?" Xu Songning suddenly remembered that they seemed to have a cat that no one had claimed, so it was an unclaimed cat and temporarily belonged to the two of them.
"Sanhua's leg has recovered. The doctor said yesterday that we can take her home. Have we found an adopter yet?"
Xu Songning patted her forehead. Too much had happened recently, and she hadn't been able to spare much energy for this calico. "Not yet. I'll have Lu Xiaomeng post the adoption requirements. Someone should adopt it soon, after all, it's so cute."
Xiang Yun looked at the whorl of her hair and nodded, his mind wandering.
The elevator arrived, and the two ended their conversation, saying goodnight to each other.
While taking a shower, Xu Songning thought about names for Xiang Yun's two cats: Hotpot and Meatball. These names were quite interesting. It was clear that this wasn't his usual style of naming. It should be the younger sister, and a younger sister who loved hotpot. All kinds of meatballs were her favorite.
The sound of dripping water fell as it swirled and flowed into the sewer inlet.
Xiang Yun smoothed his wet hair, closed his eyes, and let the water wash over his body.
He closed his eyes, and the darkness made him feel safer. Then, the beautiful scenes he had forcibly forgotten reappeared.
This time, Lily had a face.
Xu Songning.
Xiang Yun suddenly opened his eyes and slammed the tap shut. What a mess of nonsense! Xu Songning is Xu Songning, and Lili is Lili. Was he possessed? Or had he just been holding back his emotions for too long and gotten carried away?
After taking a shower, he sat on the edge of the bed reflecting on himself, and the more he reflected, the more annoyed he became.
So he picked up the phone and started harassing Gu Xing.
The phone rang more than a dozen times, but no one answered.
Just as Xiang Yun was about to hang up, the call was answered, and Gu Xing's loud voice came through, "Xiang Yun, what's up?"
Where have you been?
"Sitting in the sunset, with champagne in hand, I probably would have already started drinking by now if you hadn't called."
"foreign?"
"Yeah, what's wrong? You don't mind the cost of international calls anymore? It's been so long and you still haven't gotten to the point. Is there something you need?"
Xiang Yun was silent for a moment, and then the person on the other end cursed softly, "Damn it! Don't stay silent, I thought you hung up, turns out you were just pretending to be deep here."
"Today, I met Xu Songning," Xiang Yun said slowly.
Gu Xing wasn't surprised. They lived so close, they saw each other all the time, it wasn't really big news. He gave a light hum, indicating that he was listening and letting him continue.
"She kept staring at the buttons on my clothes."
"Oh, she likes your buttons? Then why don't you give them to her?" Gu Xing laughed in a silly way.
"Lily ripped that button off, and the dry cleaner sewed on a slightly different one."
"Wow! Lily's got some nerve! Seriously, how come you remembered this detail for so long? And why don't you throw away those clothes and get a new one? Bro, you're really suspicious."
"You didn't notice that my buttons were different before."
Gu Xing exclaimed in confusion, "Why would I pay attention to your buttons? Are they unusual? Are they different? In my eyes, all your clothes are pretty much the same taste, there's no need to look closely."
"Yeah, why bother with the buttons?" Xiang Yun looked at the clothes he had taken off, which lay quietly on the sofa.
This garment is very comfortable to wear, but it is missing a button, and I haven't been able to find a suitable replacement.
Perhaps he should have thrown it away as Gu Xing suggested, but he didn't. Instead, he kept it, as if leaving some kind of trace.
"Do you think she's paying attention to your buttons? Have you talked about buttons before?" Gu Xing asked.
Xiang Yun recalled that yes, they had talked about the origin of this unusual button.
“We talked about it, but she didn’t react much. However, she brought it up twice more.”
"A bar called Freedom, a mole on the back, a button that was ripped off," Gu Xing recounted.
"That sounds a bit far-fetched." Xiang Yun was drying his hair, his upper body was not wearing clothes, and with the movement of drying his hair, his muscle lines were perfectly displayed.
“Brother, you said it’s a bit far-fetched, but you always care about these things. Last time you found a mole in a similar spot, you made a long-distance call to me. This time, you noticed something was off about the button, and you made another long-distance call to me. It’s like you want them to be from the same person.” Gu Xing chuckled.
"I didn't," Xiang Yun retorted instinctively, pausing as she dried her hair before hanging the towel back up in the distance.
"If you think they're the same person, then go find some evidence. You can't possibly only remember Lily's mole, can you?"
Could they be the same person? Everything seems too coincidental.
He met Lily at a bar called "Freedom," whose owner was Xu Songning's friend. Both of them had that orange scent, the same mole in the same spot, and that button that no one else noticed. Xu Songning had mentioned it twice already.
Just now in the elevator, Xu Songning asked him where the original button had gone, and he almost looked her in the eye and told her the truth.
It was pulled off by a woman.
Do you know under what circumstances a woman would pull off these buttons?
Could you be that woman?
Xu Songning's eyes were so captivating, like a gentle brush lightly brushing across his heart, making him want to hold onto the person in front of him tightly.
If I tell the truth, will Xu Songning back down? Will she think she's acting recklessly? How will she react? Will it be her?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
