Chapter 19 "She is my wife."
The pajamas were never found.
Two hours later, Jiang Yao still swaggered out in front of Duan Zhuxian without saying where he was going, and Duan Zhuxian did not stop him again.
It started to rain halfway, so Jiang Yao drove to the hot pot restaurant and saw a man and a woman cuddling in the rain with an umbrella in the distance.
As soon as they saw him get off the car, they both smiled the same way and even waved at him at the same frequency.
Sitting in the private room they had reserved in advance, Jiang Yao asked the sweet and affectionate young couple across from them, "Did you enjoy your time in Northern Europe?"
Both of them were his high school classmates. The man was called Wang Rui, and he was his buddy on the volleyball team. The woman was called Xia Zhi, and she was his sister on the debate team. They had just ended their eight-year relationship a few months ago and held a wedding. It was he who introduced them to each other.
Upon hearing this, the young couple smiled at each other and started to talk about their love like an automatic feeder with the switch pressed. When they talked about a lover's tower in a small Nordic country, Wang Rui paused.
"What a coincidence, we actually ran into Hu Ye there."
"Who?" Jiang Yao couldn't remember for a moment.
"He tried so many ways to get on our volleyball team, but his skills weren't good enough, and even backdoors weren't enough. He transferred to another school in his second year of high school..." Wang Rui tried to remind Jiang Yao for a long time, but Jiang Yao still didn't remember. Then Wang Rui patted his head and added, "He's the one who pursued Duan Zhuxian."
Jiang Yao has never been able to remember people with mediocre talents, but when Duan Zhuxian was mentioned, he remembered him again and also recalled some of his deeds.
For example, this guy doesn't care about gender, he specifically targets young couples, and uses despicable means to steal their girls. He has been denounced by many victims on campus forums. In short, he is not an easy person to deal with.
Wang Rui sighed, "He wrote Duan Zhuxian's name on the graffiti wall of the Lover's Tower. I didn't expect this guy to be such a sentimental person. He still misses her after all these years. He said he plans to return to Lingbei next month and bravely pursue love. I don't know if he'll have a chance..."
With a "thump", Jiang Yao knocked the table hard with his fingertips, interrupting Wang Rui's words.
"No chance."
"Ah?" Wang Rui choked.
"Duan Zhuxian is getting married." Jiang Yao said expressionlessly.
"Oh." Wang Rui nodded as if his neck was rusty, obviously not reacting.
Jiang Yao frowned. "Go tell that guy named Hu to stay put in Europe. He's not welcome in the motherland."
Wang Rui was a little confused by Jiang Yao's reaction. In his memory, Jiang Yao and Duan Zhuxian had an average relationship and didn't have much personal connection. They mostly met in the arena, and there was a rumor in the martial arts world that "kings don't meet each other."
But he still agreed: "Yes, yes, considering Hu Ye's moral bottom line, he might do something to destroy other people's families."
Jiang Yao snorted twice and couldn't help cursing Duan Zhuxian in his heart, "A blue-faced man is a disaster."
He was a little worried about Wang Rui's joke. Chen Tang was enough, and now there was Hu Ye. If Duan Zhuxian got confused and accidentally cheated, it would be a big disaster for both of their families.
Xia Zhi on the side was still in shock. After all, he was the idol of her teenage years.
She murmured with emotion: "Who is so lucky to be able to control a high-ranking flower like Duan Zhuxian?"
Haha, whoever wants this luck can take it.
Jiang Yao sneered, but couldn't help but savor the word "control" in Xia Zhi's words, and his lips unconsciously curled up in an arc of enjoyment.
Halfway through the meal, Jiang Yao suddenly asked, "Have you ever been back to school?"
Xia Zhi was surprised: "Yeah, how did you know?"
Jiang Yao pointed to the light green paper bag pressed against the back of Xia Zhi's backpack, with "Daydream" written on the exposed part.
Xia Zhi suddenly realized: "We went to see Laoban this morning. If we hadn't happened to pass by, we wouldn't have remembered this dessert shop."
"As expected of my brother Yao." Wang Rui gave a thumbs up. "You have a really good memory."
Jiang Yao narrowed his eyes and remained silent about the flattery.
His first visit to Daydream dates back to the early summer of his freshman year in high school.
At that time, the school held a debate competition. In the last round, Jiang Yao's class and Duan Zhuxian's class competed for the championship and runner-up. The topic of the debate was "When interacting with others, being straightforward is better at solving problems than forbearance."
After an afternoon of fierce competition, the debate team led by Jiang Yao narrowly defeated Duan Zhuxian as the affirmative team.
Although friendship comes first and competition comes second, they are, after all, young men full of vigor and vitality. It is difficult for them to remain calm for a while after their fierce "quarrel". After the fight, both sides were in a bad mood and walked with their shoulders bumping secretly.
However, the two captains were still not satisfied, so they sent messages to each other without telling their teammates, and made an appointment to meet after evening self-study to continue discussing the topic in depth.
So, the two people who were competing with each other and rarely met during the day secretly met in a dessert shop that was about to close at night.
We arrived too late and the desserts were almost sold out, with only two cakes called "Secret Treasures" left.
Jiang Yao sat under the lamp, staring at the plate the waiter brought to the table. A gleam flickered in his eyes. "It's actually a strawberry cake. I'm so lucky."
Duan Zhuxian asked, "Do you like strawberries?"
Jiang Yao didn't answer. He picked up a bright red, plump strawberry and put it in his mouth. He looked up at Duan Zhuxian and asked, "Which point of view do you agree with more on today's debate topic?"
The pros and cons of the debate are determined by drawing lots and do not necessarily represent the true attitudes of the debaters themselves.
Would a lofty woman like Duan Zhuxian choose to compromise in order to take other people's feelings into consideration?
Jiang Yao didn't think so at all.
Duan Zhuxian rubbed the fork in his hand for a long time before saying calmly, "In some matters, being too straightforward may not be worth the effort. Keeping silent can at least maintain the status quo."
"Hey, the debate is over." Jiang Yao raised his eyebrows.
"It's not a debate." Duan Zhuxian said.
Jiang Yao was stunned and muttered, "It sounds so high-sounding, but it's just the mentality of a coward, right?"
After he finished speaking, he waited for a while, but Duan Zhuxian did not refute him. He didn't know where the aura that had been arguing with him during the day had gone.
Jiang Yao curled her lips, thinking that Duan Zhuxian's aloofness had struck again, and silently ate all the strawberries on the cake.
Outside the restaurant door, there were two quarreling little boys, holding up a one-dollar coin and pushing each other, fighting for the right to drive the rocking car in the convenience store next door. One of them was the son of the owner of the supermarket next door.
Jiang Yao found it amusing and turned his head to watch for a while longer, thinking about waiting for them to start fighting before going over to intervene. When he turned back around, he saw a strawberry skewered by the tines of a fork.
He looked down at the fork, and saw the end of the fork was held in a slender, clean hand.
"Open your mouth." Duan Zhuxian said.
Jiang Yao was stunned for a moment, then did as he was told for some unknown reason. After his tongue was stimulated by the sweet and sour juice bursting between his teeth, he moved it twice subconsciously. Before he could form a complete sentence, he was interrupted by two figures.
The children who were originally arguing with each other appeared at their table at some point. One of them had a sullen face and was being pushed on the arm by the other, who was more calm.
"We should learn from our older brothers and be united and loving."
The calm child said in a serious tone.
The sour-faced kid snorted coldly and stood there stubbornly.
The calm child blinked and continued, "So let's make peace. I'll let you play with the rocking car."
The sour-faced kid's tense expression wavered a little when he heard that.
The sudden interruption dispelled the shock of being fed strawberries by Duan Zhuxian. Jiang Yao swallowed the sweet taste in his mouth and laughed out loud, deliberately propping up his chin to tease the two children: "My relationship with this brother is not as friendly as you think."
They just had a heated argument today, a fight to the death, in front of all the teachers and students in the school.
The head teachers on both sides were sweating throughout the whole process, especially in the final free debate phase, when the offensives of both sides were more fierce than the other. They were afraid that their promising son would escalate the verbal fight with the opponent into a physical fight.
The calm child bit his fingers, obviously unable to understand the meaning of Jiang Yao's words.
If someone is willing to give away his most precious thing, the other person must be a very good person - this is all I know as a child.
"Are you guys fighting too?" The sour-faced boy who had been pursing his lips and not speaking for a long time suddenly spoke.
Jiang Yao was about to say something when he was interrupted by Duan Zhuxian.
"We don't fight, so you're not allowed to fight in the future. Cherish the friendship we have now."
Perhaps it was because Duan Zhuxian had a serious aura, the two children didn't dare to make a sound for a moment, holding hands, standing in a row, and nodding obediently.
Jiang Yao also nodded.
Finally, Jiang Yao came to his senses and wondered why he had joined in the fun...
But he didn't expect that Duan Zhuxian would use their relationship to educate two children who were childhood friends.
At that moment, it would be a lie to say that I wasn’t moved.
And in the years that followed, if Duan Zhuxian had not given him such illusions time and again, how could he have mistakenly believed that Duan Zhuxian was not as cold as he seemed, and that he also had a sympathetic relationship with him as a friend?
But when he tried to confirm their relationship for the first time, Duan Zhuxian denied it.
Especially like that irresponsible scumbag who has done everything he should have done and has deceived the woman into falling in love, but he just says lightly, "We just have an ordinary relationship."
The old scenes were like the receding tide, which suddenly rose again and hit the heart unexpectedly, making the chest wet.
Maybe it's because we are forced to live under the same roof, but recently I have been inexplicably thinking about the past events related to Duan Zhuxian, and they are all things that affect my mood.
Jiang Yao was a little angry again.
After the dinner, he said goodbye to the young couple and walked into the gray rain with an umbrella.
After getting into the driver's seat, he immediately brushed off the annoying moisture on his body, made a phone call to the club, and informed Amy to prepare the wine and bring people to the villa area in the north of the city in the evening.
As soon as the sun set, the group of card partners he had arranged to play with arrived on time.
Amy has seen countless people and has a sharp eye. She can tell at a glance that there are traces of another young man living in this house.
Suddenly, many unsolved mysteries about Jiang Yao were answered——
No wonder Jiang Yao went to the club so many times and never showed any lustful thoughts towards the beauties around him like a normal man. It turns out he was gay.
The others were still in a state of being possessed by Granny Liu who had just entered the Grand View Garden, and they visited this extraordinary Chinese-style villa with amazement and admiration.
Only Amy, like a sharp detective, stared at the half-open shoe cabinet and laughed. Inside were two men's leather shoes of different sizes.
"Thinking about something good, grinning so happily?"
From a distance, Jiang Yao followed Amy's gaze.
Amy walked over to Jiang Yao and asked quietly, "Is Mr. Jiang living with someone?"
Jiang Yao said perfunctorily, "I guess so."
"No wonder I haven't seen you for a while." Amy made a face. Seeing that Jiang Yao rarely responded, she couldn't help but ask again, "Would you mind revealing your identity?"
She still remembered the ambiguous red mark on Jiang Yao's wrist a month ago. According to Jiang Yao himself, it was the work of a beast.
She was very curious about who this "beast" was, who could make Jiang Shao give up his entertainment life and live quietly at home with him.
Unfortunately, Jiang Yao rejected her mercilessly: "No."
Amy had no choice but to change the question and continue gossiping: "Then if you invite us over, will your husband be jealous?"
"Don't worry, I won't."
Jiang Yao said firmly.
Although he and Duan Zhuxian did not have much tacit understanding, he still had confidence in Duan Zhuxian.
Amy was about to say something when Jiang Yao put his arm around her shoulders, pulled out a loudspeaker from somewhere, and shouted to the others who were still browsing, "Free time is over. Everyone, gather here. It's time to play cards."
*
An auction just ended at the Expo Center, more than ten kilometers away.
Assistant Lin followed Duan Zhuxian out of the venue and walked into the VIP passage, still feeling frightened.
Two hours ago, a church painting by a great architect from the last century was exhibited at the auction with a starting price of two million.
In the eyes of laymen, artworks are just things bought to show off one's taste, and this master's main field of activity is architecture, so the bidders were not interested.
Only Duan Zhuxian raised the price without blinking.
Competing with Duan Zhuxian is his half-brother, Duan Feiyi.
Duan Feiyi didn't stop until the price increased fivefold.
Many people around were whispering, probably wondering why the two Duan brothers were fighting over an unknown painting.
But in the end, Duan Zhuxian failed to win the prize. When Duan Zhuxian learned that there was something wrong with the item, he looked a little worried.
Lin Zhu suddenly realized that Mr. Duan was invited to the auction on a rare occasion, and it must be for this painting.
As I stepped out of the brightly lit venue, Duan Feiyi was waiting at the entrance.
He walked over with his hands in his pockets and gave Duan Zhuxian two ambiguous laughs. When he got no response, he spoke to himself, "I heard an interesting rumor recently. Someone said that Huayan's vice president had dinner with several directors of Cheng'an Group at a resort last week. Is this true?"
Duan Zhuxian glanced at him and said, "Just do your job well. You don't need to worry about the rest."
The expression on Duan Feiyi's face froze a little.
What he couldn't stand most was Duan Zhuxian's attitude of pretending to be a big brother but never taking him seriously. It was as if his density was too low and he had no shape in front of Duan Zhuxian.
It was obvious that Duan Zhuxian was the one who was once not valued by the Duan family.
"Of course I need to care about Cheng'an's affairs. After all, I was the one who helped Cheng'an go public." Duan Feiyi's tone was a little hurried. "Could it be that after seeing Cheng'an's stock price increase several times in a short period of time after its IPO, you regret not getting Cheng'an's project?"
Duan Feiyi's sarcastic words failed to move Duan Zhuxian at all, but shocked Lin Zhu.
Although he was a personal assistant and hardly participated in Duan Zhuxian's work decisions, he also knew about Huayan's investment in Cheng'an.
Duan Zhuxian was originally in charge of this project, but just as Duan Zhuxian had arranged everything, Duan Feiyi and his mother teamed up to intercept it.
After Duan Feiyi took over, he made several stupid mistakes. Old Master Duan, who had a close personal relationship with the Cheng'an CEO, was quite displeased with this. Fortunately, Duan Zhuxian was there to clean up the mess, calming the old master's anger.
After all, Cheng An only took Duan Feiyi, the young master, seriously because of Mr. Duan's face.
Of course he knew that rich people had weak family ties, but he didn't expect that Mr. Duan's younger brother would be so ungrateful. It would not be an exaggeration to call him a fool.
Duan Feiyi had been standing in front of Duan Zhuxian, walking backwards in a nonchalant manner, with a hint of malice in his expression.
Duan Zhuxian said no more and took out his vibrating phone to check his unread messages, as if the person in front of him was a piece of air.
"Brother really wants to snatch everything from me, from small things like auction items to big opportunities to show off in front of the elders. He even doesn't let go of my wife." Duan Feiyi said, smacking his lips. "I've seen the photo. Although he's a man, he has a pretty face."
Duan Zhuxian suddenly stopped and looked up. His sharp gaze instantly pinned Duan Feiyi's evil smile to his lips.
"She's my wife."
The light of the mobile phone went out, and Duan Zhuxian's face was hidden in the gray night, and his emotions could not be seen clearly.
Duan Feiyi suddenly felt his legs and feet go weak. The thin chill that crawled up his back was as terrifying as being stared at by a poisonous snake.
Lin Zhu cleared his throat and said, "Mr. Duan, please move aside."
Duan Feiyi woke up as if from a dream, and moved two steps to the side.
*
The wind is strong tonight, blowing from north to south, bringing soft rain to the other half of the city.
Lin Zhu sat in the car, observing Mr. Duan's expressions. He felt that Mr. Duan's face was as cold as ice. After thinking for a long time, he tentatively said, "Mr. Duan, Mr. Jiang posted on WeChat Moments."
As soon as he finished speaking, half of the ice melted.
"It was drizzling and turning cloudy today, and I was feeling a bit sentimental. I was chatting with an old classmate about the dessert shop by the west gate of the school. I wonder if it still tastes the same after eight years."
Duan Zhuxian took the phone and his eyes stayed on the word "emotional" for a long time.
It's a slightly hypocritical word, but when it comes out of Jiang Yao's mouth, it exudes a cuteness that never gets boring.
In fact, Jiang Yao is not a person who likes to reminisce about the past. Even on the day of the college entrance examination mobilization meeting, when he was invited to give a speech, he only said in a very arrogant way, "The past cannot be retrieved, but the future can still be looked forward to."
Duan Zhuxian returned the phone to Lin Zhu, and the image of a red little fox with its big tail wet by the rain appeared in his mind. He couldn't help but reflect on whether he was too demanding of Jiang Yao when he analyzed the interests at noon.
He smiled helplessly.
It’s actually not that easy to become a mortal enemy.
Compared with other intimate relationships with a high tolerance rate, it is more important to strike a balance and occasionally touch the fur.
What's more, today, he really had too many selfish thoughts.
He suddenly recalled the heavy snow on Christmas Day several years ago, the heartbroken Jiang Yao's forced calm expression, her misty eyes, and the force with which she slapped his hand away. Her thorns stood up, and she took his earnest comfort as a mockery.
It’s his fault that he was born with the bad ability to coax people, and he probably hasn’t made much progress now.
"Go to a foreign language high school."
When passing the intersection, Duan Zhuxian asked the driver to turn around.
When they arrived at the place, Assistant Lin got off the car and waited by the side, watching Mr. Duan standing in line with a group of high school students to buy cakes.
That scene is so awkward.
He heard some students whispering, discussing whether a celebrity was filming a reality show, and some secretly raised their mobile phones to take pictures.
"Classmate, you want..." The young clerk at the counter looked up and was caught off guard by the aura of the elite in a suit and tie. Her face flushed instantly and she immediately changed her words, "Handsome... ahem, sir."
Duan Zhuxian pointed to the colorful glass cabinet and said softly, "A private gift."
The small gift has changed from a manuscript worth a fortune to a cake worth dozens of dollars. I don’t know whether the picky young master would be willing to accept it.
*
When Duan Zhuxian returned home carrying the paper bag, there was a noisy party in the living room, which even drowned out the sound of him opening the door.
The purple-haired woman that Jiang Yao held in his arms at the club that day was now half-pressing Jiang Yao and tickling his waist.
Jiang Yao held the poker cards in his hand, laughing so hard that he fell from side to side. His eyes were misty from the alcohol, and the corners of his eyes were flushed, like peach blossoms blooming unrestrainedly in the spring water.
【Author’s words】
Yaoyao, dangerous, love to watch!
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