Chapter 8. Ji Jingyu is the perfect candidate.
Outside the door.
With snacks in one hand and homework in the other, Jiang Deyu waved goodbye to Jiang Sui and the others with difficulty, saying, "Comrades, although I wish to catch up with you, time is tight and the task is heavy, so I will retreat first."
Xia Fan still remembered his complaints about her, and sneered when she heard this, "If Uncle Jiang sees you copying Brother Ji's homework, he will definitely beat you to death."
"I'm not stupid. I've definitely finished my task before he gets off work."
As she spoke, she skipped downstairs.
"Sui Sui, do you want to come to my house to play?" Xia Fan asked enthusiastically, linking arms with Jiang Sui.
Before Jiang Sui could speak, Gu Ci pulled Xia Fan back into his arms and gave her a light scolding, "Jiang Sui just arrived yesterday, she must have a lot of things to organize, she doesn't have time to play with you."
Jiang Sui's gaze briefly met Gu Ci's. Although he was smiling, there was a hint of scrutiny in his eyes as he looked at her.
Compared to the enthusiastic and innocent Xia Fan, the taciturn Gu Ci is more guarded.
Clearly, a breakfast session was not enough to dispel his doubts.
He is still making a judgment.
To determine whether Jiang Sui is worth getting to know better.
He didn't want Xia Fan and Jiang Sui to have too much interaction before reaching an accurate conclusion.
Jiang Sui wasn't angry at Gu Ci's wariness; on the contrary, she understood his actions.
It's normal to be cautious when a stranger with an unclear background suddenly appears in your life, to avoid making the wrong friends later.
Jiang Sui subconsciously thought of Ji Jingyu.
He and Gu Ci are the same kind of people.
Although they were all around the same age, in this group of four, the two of them played the role of protectors.
But why did Ji Jingyu show her unprecedented friendliness when they were meeting for the first time?
Jiang belatedly realized the problem.
Not only him, but even his cat was exceptionally affectionate towards her.
Jiang Sui was certain that she did not know Ji Jingyu before.
"Sui Sui, I think I left my phone at home. I'll add you as a friend when I get back." Xia Fan's voice interrupted Jiang Sui's thoughts. "You can contact me if you need anything."
"good."
Jiang Sui decided to stop thinking about it.
Whatever they think, it won't affect her life here.
—
When Jiang Sui entered the room, Su Yinian was tidying up.
"You're back?"
It was a very simple sentence, but it took seventeen years for it to reach Jiang Sui's ears after they had been separated.
"Yes, I'm back." Jiang Sui took off her shoes and ran to Su Yinian's side. "Grandma Ji's noodles are so delicious. I think she could be a head chef."
"Grandma Ji's cooking skills are indeed very good."
"Mom," Jiang Sui cautiously asked Su Yinian, "can I call you Mom when it's just the two of us?"
Su Yinian paused as she tidied her things, her reason telling her she shouldn't agree to Jiang Sui's request.
The colder she was to Jiang Sui, the better. It wasn't that she was afraid Jiang Sui would take advantage of her, but rather that she was worried she would lose herself in those repeated calls of "Mom" and cause irreparable consequences again.
But often, it is human emotion that makes decisions faster than reason.
"Whatever you want."
This is no different from simply agreeing.
"Thank you, Mom."
Jiang Sui didn't leave; she just quietly stayed by Su Yinian's side, watching her pack her things.
"Mom, please don't send me away."
Jiang Sui seemed to have made a very difficult but careful decision: "Even if you and Dad can't live together in the end, I still want to stay with you."
Jiang Sui had already thought these words through on her way to Xunning.
She dreams of her family of three being reunited, but if her mother really doesn't want to be with her father, she will never force her; she respects all her decisions.
Su Yinian couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat; she didn't know if this was the power of her bloodline.
She had never raised this child for even a single day, yet Jiang Sui still depended on her and loved her so much.
For a moment, Su Yinian wanted to ignore everything and hug Jiang Sui, but in the end, he held back.
She said that her distrust of Jiang Yunzhao was not just a momentary outburst.
From beginning to end, Su Yinian felt that Jiang Sui would leave him.
It's just a matter of time.
—
Jiang Sui had no idea what Su Yinian was thinking; she only knew that her mother's attitude towards her was gradually softening.
"Mom, school starts the day after tomorrow, can you take me out for a walk?"
Jiang Sui leaned on the table, tilting her head to look at Su Yinian. Her delicate little face, still a bit chubby, was rounded out by her arm, and her dark, watery eyes were full of anticipation.
No one could bear to refuse her.
After a moment of silence, Su Yinian nodded.
"Yay!" Jiang Sui excitedly stood up from her seat. "Mom, wait for me a moment, I'm going to change my clothes."
Even if Jiang Sui hadn't mentioned it, Su Yinian had already planned to do so.
Otherwise, once school starts, she will have even less time to help Jiang Sui get acquainted with the surroundings.
Even if they are complete strangers staying with her, she has an obligation to help them adapt as quickly as possible.
This is normal and doesn't have any special meaning.
Su Yinian tried to convince herself that she couldn't agree to any of Jiang Sui's requests from now on.
"Mother."
Hearing the sound, Su Yinian suddenly turned around, and Jiang Sui was running out of the room excitedly.
Avocado green short-sleeved shirt paired with knee-length denim shorts, revealing a glimpse of tender calves, which gleam like fine jade in the sunlight.
This color is actually quite selective in terms of who can pull it off, but Jiang Sui has fair skin and a tall figure, which makes her look fresh, lazy, and full of youthful charm.
She ran quickly to Su Yinian and opened her palm, revealing a flower hair tie in the same color as her clothes.
Under Su Yinian's questioning gaze, Jiang Sui slowly said, "Mom, can you braid my hair for me?"
"Wh-what?"
Jiang Sui gathered her hair to one side and explained to Su Yinian while gesturing, "It's just a side braid to match my outfit today."
"Can't you do it yourself?"
"I don't know how to do this. My nanny always helped me at home..."
Jiang Sui's voice gradually lowered; she was worried that Su Yinian would think she was being spoiled.
She got carried away with her excitement and seemed to have crossed the line again...
Just as Jiang Sui was feeling uneasy, Su Yinian had already taken the hair tie from her hand, "Let me try it on."
"Thank you, Mom!"
Su Yinian gently combed Jiang Sui's long hair with his fingers, but his words were somewhat cold, "It's nothing, I sometimes braid students' hair too."
Jiang Sui's upturned lips slowly faded.
For the rest of the time, neither of them spoke.
The morning sun wasn't too hot, so the air conditioning wasn't on in the living room; only a standing fan was oscillating and working.
"How come he even inherited Jiang Yunzhao's curly hair gene?" Su Yinian couldn't help but mutter softly.
It didn't sound like disdain; it was more like a surprised discovery.
Jiang Sui's mood suddenly improved.
—
As time passed, the temperature gradually rose, cicadas chirped incessantly outside the window, and the air was filled with heat.
Fortunately, the road from the residential area to the bus stop is lined with lush trees. Although it cannot completely block the direct sunlight, it can at least give people a breather.
The Nianhuali residential area is in a good location, with bus stops at the entrance connecting to schools, hospitals, and Xunning's largest shopping mall.
Taking one bus ride is equivalent to exploring most of Xunning.
At this time of day, there aren't many people on the bus, and there are still several empty seats.
Jiang Sui followed Su Yinian onto the bus and chose a window seat. The air conditioning in the bus was set to a very low temperature, and she was caught off guard and shivered from the cold.
The bus wasn't going very fast.
Jiang Sui lifted a corner of the blue curtain, and the scenery outside the window kept changing as the car drove along.
Without the obstruction of tall buildings, the blue sky and white clouds are clearly visible. The ancient buildings are covered with ivy, and the sunlight casts dappled shadows on them...
Seeing her looking around curiously, Su Yinian guessed that it was her first time riding a bus.
“Xunning is just a small county town. It can’t compare with Licheng in any way. Life here is much harder than you can imagine.”
"Hmm?" Jiang Sui turned her gaze away from the window, not understanding why Su Yinian suddenly said these things to her.
"Take taking the bus for example. You'll have to take this bus to and from school from now on. There won't be just a few people on the bus. You might have to stand the whole way, and you might even get jostled by other people. It's normal to have the smell of gasoline, sweat, food, and all sorts of unpleasant odors on the bus."
Su Yinian spoke calmly, and her words contained no discrimination or prejudice; she was simply stating a fact to Jiang Sui objectively.
Are you sure you can tolerate all of this?
"I have no idea."
Jiang Sui's voice was somewhat low; she truly couldn't assure Su Yinian unequivocally that she could endure all of this.
"But I know that if I leave you and go back without even trying, I will definitely regret it."
Of all Jiang Sui's body, her eyes were the most similar to Su Yinian's, but at this moment they didn't quite resemble him anymore.
There was no fear or intention to back down in her eyes.
Su Yinian had to admit that Jiang Yunzhao had really taken good care of her.
As if she had thought of something, Jiang Sui tilted her head and leaned on Su Yinian's shoulder, seemingly certain that he wouldn't push her away.
"Actually, Mom, you really don't need to be so conflicted and troubled. Just like we agreed before, treat me as an ordinary guest. I'm fine."
With her mother's warm scent filling her nostrils, Jiang Sui took a deep breath with satisfaction and continued, "As for whether I can adapt to life here, that's something I need to figure out."
Su Yinian seemed to be convinced. She stopped talking and unconsciously straightened her back. Jiang Sui followed suit and moved her head slightly.
It's more comfortable to lean against than before.
—
Su Yinian took Jiang Suixian to the mall.
The first floor was a furniture store, and Su Yinian went inside on his own.
Are we going to buy furniture?
"Buy a desk and a bookcase."
It goes without saying who it was bought for.
The room Jiang Sui is currently living in has very little furniture.
These two things are what she needs most right now.
Su Yinian was very decisive when buying things, while Jiang Sui only put in a little effort when choosing colors.
When it was time to pay, Jiang Sui was about to take out her phone to pay when Su Yinian had already paid the bill.
"I can pay for it myself."
Last night, Jiang Yunzhao told her that Su Yinian refused to accept his child support and told Jiang Sui to pay for whatever she wanted to buy herself.
While filling out the relevant information, Su Yinian said, "Besides paying for the furniture, are you also planning to give me money for food and lodging?"
Her voice was as gentle as ever, and her seemingly casual question set off alarm bells in Jiang Sui's mind.
Her intuition told her that if she actually nodded, her mother would definitely be unhappy.
Jiang Sui put the phone back, rested her chin on her hands, looked at Su Yinian, and said in a coquettish tone, "Thank you, Mom. Mom is so good!"
Su Yinian stood up and handed the completed form to the salesperson, then said, "No need to thank me. After you leave, others can use these things too."
Jiang Sui fiddled with the ballpoint pen that Su Yinian had just finished using, her mood not being greatly affected by her words.
After several attempts, she realized that Su Yinian was all talk and no action.
—
[My first date with my mom.]
It also included a photo.
In the photo, Su Yinian is talking to a salesperson with her back turned, while Jiang Sui stands behind her, smiling brightly at the camera.
This post on WeChat Moments is only visible to two people.
One is Jiang Yunzhao.
Jiang Sui originally sent it to him.
Another one is Ji Jingyu.
When Jiang Sui was selecting the options, she accidentally included him.
After thinking about it, I decided not to remove him.
On one hand, Ji Jingyu knew about her true relationship with Su Yinian, and on the other hand, Jiang Sui also wanted to share this with others.
Ji Jingyu is the perfect candidate.
—
The first person to see this post on WeChat Moments was not Jiang Yunzhao, but Ji Jingyu.
The person in the photo had a pair of pure and beautiful eyes filled with laughter, and their porcelain-white and soft face was slightly flushed with excitement, like the most delicate peach blossoms in the third month of spring.
"Xiao Jing, what are you looking at so intently?" Grandma Ji asked him curiously.
"I didn't see anything." Ji Jingyu closed his phone, and once again transformed into the "tall, long-legged, cold-faced handsome guy" that Jiang Deyu had described.
That fleeting softness seemed like an illusion.
A note from the author:
Why was Ji Ge able to get hooked? Because their nicknames are both symbols, one above the other.
I'll let it slide this time, but next time, please don't let your dad get involved on your first date with your boyfriend.
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