Chapter 84
The whole afternoon was filled with meetings of all sizes. Perhaps because of her insomnia last night, she was unusually tired today. When she returned to the office, Gu Cunxi stood in front of the window, watching the sky gradually darken. She raised her hand and looked at her watch. It was almost seven o'clock.
I don't know how her case is going.
She picked up her phone and dialed...
"How did the case go? My meeting just ended. Do you want to have dinner together tonight?" Gu Cunxi said in a tired tone.
"I just finished discussing the case and went back to the hotel. I thought you would be busy until late, so I didn't want to disturb you. Since Mr. Gu has finished his work, let's have dinner together tonight," Jiang Rao responded indifferently.
"?"
Gu Cunxi was a little confused by Jiang Rao's indifference and did not ask any further questions.
"Okay, I'll pick you up then."
After hanging up the phone, she picked up her coat and hurried to the garage. She drove very fast and parked the car at the Hyatt Hotel in a blink of an eye. She stood in front of the door of room 2802 and knocked gently.
"Come in first and wait for me, I'll change my clothes," Jiang Rao said as he opened the door.
"good"
Gu Cunxi stood by the French window in the living room and looked at the night outside. He was very charming. The night view here can be called beautiful.
"Cunxi, how about we have some drinks tonight?" A voice came from the bedroom. Jiang Rao leaned out and looked at her and smiled.
"I drove"
"We can take a taxi or call a designated driver. We've known each other for so long, and we've never had a drink together!"
“…”
Although I have known Jiang Rao for four years, I don't seem to know her. I have rarely contacted Jiang Rao in the past four years, but she would find me to chat about her recent situation from time to time. She is sometimes nonsensical, sometimes cold and distant, which makes people confused.
"Mr. Gu... please give me a favor." Jiang Rao changed his clothes and leaned against the bedroom door, looking at her.
"Then go ahead."
"How about we go to the bar?"
“???”
Gu Cunxi originally thought Jiang Rao just wanted to drink, but she didn't expect that she wanted to go to the bar to drink... She never liked that kind of place, it was noisy and chaotic.
"Jiang Rao... don't you want to drink? We can find a restaurant to eat and drink at the same time. Why go to a bar?"
"Of course we have to go to the bar to drink!"
"Let's just play for a while. It won't affect tomorrow's work. I finally came to North City, so of course I have to eat, drink and have fun to make the trip worthwhile. Gu Cunxi, take me with you." Jiang Rao pursed his lips.
“…”
"Okay... just this once." She felt helpless, but it was not easy to refuse Jiang Rao's request. Indeed, when she came to North City, she should be allowed to go as many places as possible. This was the case for ordinary friends, not to mention that she was the one who saved her!
"!" Jiang Rao's heart flashed with joy
In fact, she didn't really want to go to the bar. She knew that Gu Cunxi would not like that kind of occasion either. However, such a decadent atmosphere could make people forget the pain temporarily, so she just wanted her to indulge herself once!
"Then let's go!" Jiang Rao pulled her out impatiently.
"I can take you to the bar, but I'll choose the location."
"no problem!"
She looked at Jiang Rao, raised the corner of her mouth and revealed a barely perceptible smile.
…
"Xiao Lin, please recommend some bars with a good environment where you can just listen to music and drink. Please send me the address."
"Okay, Mr. Gu."
After hanging up the phone, Gu Cunxi turned around and looked at Jiang Rao beside him with a smug look on his face.
“…”
"Gu Cunxi, I mean we should go to the bar, not the club."
"Jiang Rao, I won't take you to the kind of bar you mentioned. I have to be responsible for your safety. The environment there is complicated," Gu Cunxi said patiently.
"Okay then..." Jiang Rao curled his lips...
Her agreement to go to the bar for a drink was already a concession. Jiang Rao didn't want Gu Cunxi to think she was pushing things too far, so after thinking it over, he gave up...
After a while, Lin Yan sent the addresses of several selected bars to Gu Cunxi's mobile phone.
"Here~ Take a look at these and decide which one to go to." Gu Cunxi handed over the phone.
Jiang Rao happily took the phone and looked at it.
Although Gu Cunxi rejected her, he would still respect her opinion within the principles, and that was enough!
"How about this one? It looks very romantic," Jiang Rao said, pointing at the screen.
"Then let's go with this one, but we agreed to stay for a while and just have a glass of wine, not a big drink!"
Jiang Rao looked at her with a clear smile and laughed softly at the door of the hotel.
“???”
"Gu Cunxi, do you know that you looked like an old cadre just now?" she joked
“…”
"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you. Let's have a drink, and then we'll leave."
After saying that, Jiang Rao walked to the door and stopped a car. He turned around and looked at Gu Cunxi and said, "Let's go. Go early and come back early, old cadre."
“…”
Seeing Jiang Rao teasing him, Gu Cunxi shook his head helplessly and followed him.
"Master, let's go to Yinhai Bar!"
Along the way, Gu Cunxi watched the cars speeding by outside the window in silence. She thought about returning to Jiang Huai after the acquisition was completed tomorrow... Her mood became more complicated.
"Angry?"
“???”
"What are you angry about?" Gu Cunxi was puzzled.
"I thought you were angry because of the joke just now, so silent..." Jiang Rao breathed a sigh of relief and rolled his eyes at her.
“…”
"Am I that stingy?"
"I'm stingy~" Jiang Rao smiled, turned his head away, and his eyes were dark.
As a lawyer, reading people's expressions and understanding their hearts is one of her professional skills. Gu Cunxi's lonely expression just now couldn't be just because of work...
"My case has been discussed. We can leave anytime tomorrow after you finish your work." Jiang Rao said calmly, feeling complicated.
She wanted Gu Cunxi to go back, but she was also afraid of him going back. If she returned to Jiang Huai just to make a break with the past, then that would be the beginning of her chance. What if it wasn't...
"Well, then let's do it tomorrow after the acquisition is completed."
Gu Cunxi didn't care about the complex and depressed tone in Jiang Rao's voice. He just looked out the window quietly, not knowing what he was thinking. It seemed that he was not thinking about anything, but he was thinking about it non-stop.
…
The bar door sign looks very romantic, different from other bars with bright lights and wine, with a touch of elegance and tranquility, and an ambiguous atmosphere.
The two walked into the bar, and from far away came the sound of a slow song, light, sad, and soothing to the ears. Gu Cunxi nodded with satisfaction.
"Cunxi, let's sit over there. The view is great. We can see the singers on the stage and the night view outside."
After that, Jiang Rao walked to the sofa area by the window and sat down. The waiter came forward enthusiastically and handed over the wine list.
"A glass of Margarita" Gu Cunxi didn't even look at the wine list and ordered a glass.
Jiang Rao flipped through the wine list for a long time but couldn't order anything.
“…”
Gu Cunxi sat opposite her and smiled at her... This guy obviously doesn't know how to drink, but he still wants to come to the bar!
Jiang Rao pushed the wine list over and said: I don't know what to order, please help me order, I'll do as you say.
"..." Pulling myself to drink, but not knowing how to order
Gu Cunxi took the wine list and looked at it for a moment, then said to the waiter beside him: "Long Island Iced Tea"
After ordering the drinks, the waiter slowly left. Jiang Rao stared at her in a trance. Just then, for a moment, the stage lights shone on her, like light...
"I thought you really couldn't drink. You ordered a Margarita without even looking at the wine list. What's so special about this drink?" Jiang Rao asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I had read an article about the story behind this wine before, so I tried it out of curiosity.”
"What's the story? Tell me..." Jiang Rao leaned forward, holding his chin with his hand, waiting for her to speak.
"It's about a bartender who fell in love with a woman named Margarita in Mexico. One day, while they were hunting in the wild, Margarita was hit by a stray bullet and died in her lover's arms. The bartender then used Tequila, the national liquor of Mexico, as the base of a cocktail, using the sour taste of lemon juice to represent the bitterness in his heart and the salt frost to represent the tears of remembrance. He then mixed this drink and named it "Margarita" to commemorate his deceased lover."
"Later, because of this article, I became curious about this drink, so I tried it once. It suited my taste very well. It has the bitterness of agave, the acidity of lemon and the saltiness of salt cream. These three different flavors are intertwined together, which is both warm and slightly sad."
As they were talking, the wine for the two of them was served. Jiang Rao looked at the glass of wine in front of Gu Cunxi with a barely perceptible smile on his face.
"Cunxi...can I have a taste of yours? I'm a little curious too."
“!!”
Gu Cunxi was stunned, feeling a little resistant, but she didn't know how to speak. In recent years, her mysophobia has become more and more serious, like a strange disease.
Without waiting for her response, Jiang Rao's eyes darkened and he pursed his lips slightly.
The atmosphere between the two of them was a little awkward for a moment. Gu Cunxi had no choice but to push the glass in front of Jiang Rao and said, "That's right... I want to try yours too. Let's exchange."
She didn't want to embarrass Jiang Rao by rejecting him outright, the man who had saved her, so she handed over the wine in exchange and took Jiang Rao's glass.
This action made Jiang Rao sad and soft-hearted...
When the song ended, applause broke the silence between the two. The music on the stage continued to play. The two of them sat quietly by the side, sipping their wine without making a sound.
I have already drunk most of the wine and I am feeling a little tipsy.
"Cunxi... do you still love her?" Perhaps it was the effect of alcohol that made Jiang Rao finally boldly ask the question she had always wanted to ask.
“!!”
Gu Cunxi was listening intently to the music on the stage. The moment Jiang Rao mentioned "her", his heart felt as if it had been pricked by a needle...
This was the first time Jiang Rao had mentioned Xiao Peiyin since their reunion. They had both tacitly kept silent about the past. He didn't know why she suddenly asked him this question tonight...
All of a sudden, all the memories that had been buried deep in her heart came flooding back...
In the past four years, she has asked herself countless times whether she still loves Xiao Peiyin... But there is no answer, no answer. Not loving her is fake, hating her is also real, and forgetting is even harder... Four years have passed, and she left herself, but the memory has always remained there, neither hot nor cold, burning everything in her all the time, and she has never been at peace!
"I don't want to love anyone!" Gu Cunxi looked at her with cold eyes.
After saying this, she drank the Long Island Iced Tea in front of her.
The answer cannot be called an answer. She did not directly answer Jiang Rao's question.
Just saying that I don’t want to love, not that I don’t love, so this is love...
Jiang Rao sighed in his heart...his eyes dimmed
The wine glass in front of her was already empty. Jiang Rao just sat there quietly, watching the woman singing on the stage, lost in thought. The two of them stopped talking. Gu Cunxi refused to answer her questions directly. The answer was obvious, and it was pointless to continue asking...
"Why do you want to drink today?" Gu Cunxi's words interrupted her thoughts.
“???”
Jiang Rao was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to answer. She couldn't say that she was worried that something would happen between her and Xiao Peiyin again if she returned to Jianghuai City, so she was bored and wanted to drink...
"Nothing...it's just that I haven't had a drink in a long time."
“…”
There was a man walking towards them at the bar not far away. Gu Cunxi raised her eyebrows and watched him approach. She stood beside Jiang Rao, holding up her glass.
"Can we have a drink together, beautiful lady?" The man looked at Jiang Rao and spoke slowly, the glass in his hand shaking slightly, with a hint of drunkenness.
“…”
"No need, I never drink with strangers!" Jiang Rao looked at the man, his eyes flashing with displeasure, and his tone was very indifferent.
“!”
It was the first time that Gu Cunxi saw Jiang Rao's cold and unhappy side. He looked at her meaningfully with a smile on his face.
She looks quite charming when she has a serious and cold face...
Gu Cunxi did not intend to speak to help her out. It was she who insisted on coming to the bar. Besides, Jiang Rao had been in the legal profession for many years, so she would not be unable to handle such a thing.
Her faint smile, in Jiang Rao's eyes, looked as if she was staying out of the matter, which made her even more annoyed.
...
The man next to her kept looking at Jiang Rao, staring at her with lustful eyes.
After a while, the man raised his hand and placed it on Jiang Rao's shoulder. He leaned over and said, "It's just a glass of wine. We're all here to have fun, so please give me some face."
"!!" Jiang Rao instantly stood up and knocked the man's hand away, saying, "Be more respectful!" He felt as nauseous as if he had eaten a fly.
“!!”
Gu Cunxi, who was sitting opposite, didn't expect the man to behave so frivolously. She became serious in an instant. She stood up and walked to Jiang Rao's side, holding her behind her.
"Since my friend has already declined your invitation, sir, you should be more sensible! His behavior is so frivolous and ungraceful, no wonder he has no one to drink with!"
"Are you waiting for me to call the police to take you to the police station to sober up?" Gu Cunxi's tone was cold, and the man was speechless.
After a long standoff, she saw that the man still had no intention of leaving, so she took out her phone and prepared to call the police.
“!”
Seeing this, the man looked at Jiang Rao behind him with a contemptuous smile and left in a hurry.
"Are you okay..." She turned and looked at Jiang Rao, frowning.
"It's okay..." Jiang Rao folded his arms and lowered his head, standing still.
"Let's go!" Gu Cunxi pulled her, picked up his bag and walked towards the bar. After paying the bill, they left in a hurry.
Standing at the door of the bar, the evening breeze hits my face, and I feel a little more sober.
"This is why I didn't want to bring you to the bar..." She looked at Jiang Rao, paused, and said, "But since you insist on doing this, I don't want to refuse. Don't come to this kind of place again. It's not safe!"
The tone of displeasure yet concern warmed Jiang Rao's heart.
The man just now wasn't worth her attention, but Gu Cunxi's initial attitude of watching from the sidelines irritated her. She could watch herself being hit on, yet remain indifferent. If it weren't for the man's frivolous behavior, perhaps she wouldn't have come forward to help her...
"Why aren't you talking?"
"It's okay, I just feel bored." Jiang Rao turned his head away and didn't look at her.
"Because of the man just now?" Gu Cunxi asked
Jiang Rao shook his head and nodded, leaving her confused.
"?"
"Cunxi, if that man hadn't suddenly attacked you just now, would you still help me?"
Gu Cunxi was slightly stunned. It turned out that this was what Jiang Rao cared about...
"Won't"
In an instant, Jiang Rao's expression darkened, his face filled with disappointment. He turned his back to her and said nothing.
"Jiang Rao?"
“…”
A sigh came from behind, but Jiang Rao did not respond.
"I have no intention of standing by and watching!"
"As a lawyer, I believe you can handle it perfectly. Besides, the man didn't do anything excessive at first. Later, when he approached you, didn't I stand in front of you?"
"Jiang Rao, I have my own considerations when it comes to things and people. I hope you don't misunderstand me as not being a good friend!" She said sincerely.
Indeed... As a friend, Gu Cunxi only protected her when needed, just like when she stood in front of him just now. What else could he not be satisfied with...
But if it were Xiao Peiyin, she would definitely rush forward without caring about anything!
This is the difference between love and friendship... She can be rational and considerate with Gu Cunxi, but she is always so selfless with Xiao Peiyin...
"Don't be angry, Lawyer Jiang, I really didn't mean to laugh at you, it's just..."
“!!”
Before he could finish, Jiang Rao turned around and hugged her tightly, resting his face on her shoulder.
"Jiang Rao!!"
The sudden hug made Gu Cunxi freeze in place, then she reached out and pushed the person in front of her.
"What’s wrong with you?"
The person in front of her didn't say anything, just hugged her...
"If my behavior just now made you feel uncomfortable, then I apologize to you."
"Jiang Rao...let me go first!" She pushed again
Taking advantage of the alcohol, Jiang Rao became greedy, she didn't want to let go! She was greedy for Gu Cunxi's embrace, the pleasant smell penetrated into her nose, and she tightened her hands again
“…”
Seeing that his struggle was ineffective, Gu Cunxi stopped talking and put his hands down on both sides of his body, letting Jiang Rao hold him.
The two stood on the street for a long time before Jiang Rao slowly withdrew his hand, as if reluctant to leave.
Maybe it was the strong aftereffect of the cocktail, or maybe it was the drunkenness that made her lose control tonight... She wasn't even satisfied with this hug, she wanted more.
I want Gu Cunxi’s kiss!
She immediately stopped her thoughts and desires and stepped back.
"Ahem..." She cleared her throat.
"I'll forgive you this time, but don't do it again!" Jiang Rao looked at her, pretending to be angry: "Gu Cunxi, you owe me your life, but I don't want you to pay me back, but can't you at least protect me a little bit...
"I've been taken advantage of!"
"I promise," Gu Cunxi raised his hands to his ears and swore, "I won't do it again next time."
"That's good enough. Let's go. It's late. You have an acquisition to deal with tomorrow. Go back and get some rest."
The two walked to the side of the road and stopped a car
"Master, Hyatt Hotel"
Streetlights can be seen everywhere on the streets at night, and thousands of lights are on in the tall buildings. Gu Cunxi sat in the back row, took out her phone, clicked on the WeChat status bar, edited a string of text, and set it to private.
[Xiao Peiyin, I drank alcohol, I didn't drive!]
[Margaret reminds me of you!]
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