Chapter 24 "Secretly Crossing Chencang."
"You two??"
Chen Tang slowly widened his eyes, looked to the right at Jiang Yao, then to the left at Duan Zhuxian, and touched his index fingers together, "Oh my God, am I dreaming? Xiaowei, come and pinch me."
Duan Zhuxian nodded: "I'm not dreaming. After we get the marriage certificate tomorrow, Jiang Yao will be my wife."
Another earth-shattering sound.
Jiang Yao's head was buzzing, his face flushed, and he wanted to rush up and cover Duan Zhuxian's mouth.
I don’t know what’s wrong with Duan Zhuxian, he actually ran to Chen Tang to announce the marriage news.
He kept calling her "wife" affectionately, as if they were in a free love relationship and had finally gotten married.
As expected, Chen Tang misunderstood and clapped his hands, saying, "Okay, okay, the clown turned out to be me! I thought you were having a conflict and thought of all sorts of ways to mediate, but it turns out you were just doing it in secret!"
Secretly pass through Chencang.
This is a serious crime.
Jiang Yao felt even more wronged than Dou E. He strode up to Chen Tang and tried to defend himself: "Being a mortal enemy and a marriage partner, these two things are actually not contradictory. Can you understand?"
Chen Tang smiled and said, "I understand. It's just the fun between you two young lovers."
Jiang Yao held his forehead and felt for the first time the feeling of being unable to defend himself.
Chen Tang forced a smile on his face and shook his head with a fake sigh: "Such a big thing happened, and none of you told me. I am such a lowly friend."
Jiang Yao immediately became excited when this was brought up. "You're still talking about me. Didn't you fail to inform me when you were dating your wife during your freshman year? Or was it because someone asked you to bring Xiao Xu over so I could meet him that you remembered me, your good brother?"
Jiang Yao was flipping through the old account books, and then he remembered the unpleasant parting in the heavy snow that year. He glared at the outside of the door in annoyance, and met the gaze of Duan Zhuxian who had been waiting there.
"What are you looking at? Don't you want your eyes anymore?"
Jiang Yao looked fierce, like a thorn in the flesh.
"It's getting late, we should go home."
Duan Zhuxian reached out and gently put his arm around Jiang Yao's slightly stiff shoulders.
*
After saying goodbye to Chen Tang and his wife, Jiang Yao broke free from Duan Zhuxian's arm and quickly moved half a meter away from him.
He felt very uncomfortable and didn't know what Duan Zhuxian was singing about.
Jiang Yao hadn't driven here before, and after leaving the building, he subconsciously followed Duan Zhuxian.
The sky was a thick smoky blue, as if hiding a play.
In the darkness of the night, Jiang Yao looked at Duan Zhuxian's silhouette for a while and couldn't help asking, "How did you know Chen Tang lived here?"
Duan Zhuxian said calmly, "It's not difficult to find out."
With Duan Zhuxian's ability and connections, it is indeed easy to find out a person's address, but it still takes some time and effort, not to mention that Duan Zhuxian is a busy man who values every minute.
Jiang Yao narrowed his eyes and said sarcastically, "You haven't already done your research and are ready to be my guest at any time, right?"
Given Duan Zhuxian's habit of doing things secretly, he believed that Duan Zhuxian could do it.
"I just checked." Duan Zhuxian turned to look at Jiang Yao, "To pick you up."
The moonlight happened to peek through the clouds, illuminating Duan Zhuxian's face, which was bright and open.
Jiang Yao was stunned for a moment.
The feather that appeared out of nowhere on my chest began to tickle me again.
Until he heard the sound of a car lock being unlocked.
"Get in the car."
Duan Zhuxian opened the passenger seat, his movements and tone were decisive and urging.
When getting into the car, Jiang Yao was still feeling itchy in his heart. He was distracted and didn't pay attention to the top of his head, so he bumped into a hand.
Duan Zhuxian said he was very anxious, but he was like a gentleman, holding the door frame for him with his hands.
Sitting in the car, Jiang Yao received a message from Chen Tang: "Although it may seem like hindsight, I actually had a hunch a long time ago that you two might be having an affair. [Doghead]"
Jiang Yao sent a question mark.
Chen Tang: "When we were in school, you two were so focused on each other, your magnetic field was so strong, I always felt that you two had the best relationship and I was superfluous."
Haha, you observe very carefully.
Jiang Yao secretly complained.
I used to like you, but you didn’t feel anything at all, you straight man.
Jiang Yao stared at the message sent by Chen Tang for a long time, put the phone upside down on his thigh, tilted his head to look at the car window, and caught a glimpse of Duan Zhuxian's outline through the glass.
He did not intend to completely deny Chen Tang's inference. He was not a dishonest person like Duan Zhuxian.
To be honest, in the past years, Duan Zhuxian's presence was indeed stronger than Chen Tang's.
To him, Chen Tang was like a beautiful lady standing quietly in a fine oil painting. The first sight of her was stunning and pleasing to the eye, reflecting the thrill and aesthetics limited to youth.
But as time went by, the picture became old and blurred, the people and the background gradually merged into one, and in the end only a touch of brilliant but empty color remained.
Duan Zhuxian is just the opposite. He is a silent explosion, or a flare shot into his world. The bright light is blinding, bringing about a turbulent upheaval, and the deep mark left behind will not be worn away even by the passage of time.
Even when he liked Chen Tang, the person he looked at was always his love rival Duan Zhuxian.
As for Duan Zhuxian, he didn't realize how much this person cared about him.
Except when I deliberately piss him off.
He felt that Shen Tang's last sentence was indeed exaggerated.
Chen Tang and Duan Zhuxian have been childhood friends. How can they be compared to him, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere and confronted Duan Zhuxian right from the start, wishing to appear in the middle of every road to block Duan Zhuxian?
The car drove along a wide road, and a caller ID named "Zhang Hao" popped up on the car screen.
Duan Zhuxian raised his hand to connect.
The voice on the other end came out directly: "Mr. Duan, is there anyone else around you right now?"
Zhang Hao's tone was hesitant, as if he had something to report but was afraid of leaking the information.
Just when Duan Zhuxian wanted him to continue, Jiang Yao tapped the window glass and said, "Pull the car to the side of the road. I'm going to go to the other side. Contact me when you're done."
When he turned the corner just now, he saw an open architectural design exhibition window on the other side of the road.
Duan Zhuxian glanced at Jiang Yao and said, "You don't have to avoid it."
Jiang Yao raised his chin unappreciatively: "I'm not interested in eavesdropping. Don't blame me if anything goes wrong."
Duan Zhuxian raised his eyebrows slightly: "When have I ever relied on you?"
...Jiang Yao was speechless.
On the surface, Duan Zhuxian didn't seem to blame him much, but he had a lot of opinions about Duan Zhuxian.
"Alright, alright, I won't disturb Mr. Duan from his work."
As soon as the car stopped, Jiang Yao got out after saying a few words. His eyes were wandering, his tone was impetuous, and he opened and closed the door a little roughly.
This is a typical manifestation of Jiang Yao's guilty conscience.
Duan Zhuxian followed closely with his eyes until the cool figure disappeared around the corner of the flower bed in the night wind, and the corners of his lips gradually fell back.
Zhang Hao on the other end of the phone held his breath for a long time, and was suddenly awakened by Duan Zhuxian's cold and businesslike voice, and hurriedly began to report his work.
For a moment, he almost suspected that he had dialed the wrong number.
The gentle man who was smiling while speaking just now was nothing like the Mr. Duan he knew.
Following Duan Zhuxian's instructions, Zhang Hao continued to investigate Duan Feiyi's movements over the past few days and made some new discoveries: "Duan Feiyi has a house in Xiting, you should know that, right?"
Duan Zhuxian hummed, his eyes slightly cold.
The house Zhang Hao mentioned was the only asset his mother left him before she went abroad. When he was sixteen, his father Duan Song took it away by unconventional means and gave it to He Feifei and Duan Feiyi, just to surrender to the He family and seek their business support.
He had been living there alone until the mother and son walked in with the property deed and kicked him out.
Zhang Hao continued, "The house was transferred in the middle of the year and is now registered under the name of a man named Liu Jing."
Liu Jing was a technician at Cheng'an Group, a relatively minor figure within the company, but he had access to crucial securities trading information. Duan Feiyi, on the other hand, was the primary person responsible for Huayan's initial IPO. The fact that they were able to trade tens of millions in real estate clearly meant that these two had more than just a common interest.
Fifteen minutes later, the call ended.
Duan Zhuxian pinched his brows, then drove across the road at the speed limit.
After getting off the bus, I strode towards the street square and saw a small tuft of red hair from a distance, waving unrestrainedly in the night wind.
The last bit of coldness in his eyes dissipated like fog, and Duan Zhuxian's hurried pace slowed down.
Jiang Yao was using his mobile phone to scan the QR code and vote for the architectural works in the window, then he filled out the comments carefully with a critical look on his face.
Duan Zhuxian did not disturb him. He slowly stepped back a few steps, put a cigarette in his mouth, thought about it, and did not light it.
Jiang Yao was immersed in his own world, writing a long paragraph with great concentration. After clicking send, he realized there was someone behind him. He looked up and saw a man not far behind him through the glass.
Duan Zhuxian stood with his back to the light, his face hidden in the shadows, revealing only his eyes that were silently watching him.
For a moment, Jiang Yao felt that those eyes were softer than the autumn night.
Jiang Yao put one hand in his pocket and turned around: "Where is Mr. Duan behind the cosplay?"
"Are you scared by me?"
Against the street lights behind him, Duan Zhuxian's gaze was fixed on Jiang Yao's face. His teasing words were neither harsh nor cold, and his indifferent expression blended into the gray-blue night like water.
Jiang Yao was stunned and smelled a hint of low pressure.
He walked up to Duan Zhuxian, bent down, raised his head, and asked curiously from below: "Duan Zhuxian, are you in a bad mood?"
No matter how ordinary the disguise is, there is still the possibility that this fox-like man will see through it.
This is the experience Duan Zhuxian has gained over the years.
Duan Zhuxian's eyes slowly swept over the beautiful face that was very close to him, and his thin lips moved slightly: "No."
Haha, you’re just being stubborn.
Jiang Yao curled her lips, but was kind enough not to expose him.
He took out a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, lit it, and then touched the cigarette between Duan Zhuxian's fingers with his cigarette butt. In the deserted square, he and Duan Zhuxian stood side by side in the cool breeze. After Duan Zhuxian finished smoking, they returned to the car together.
On the way home, Duan Zhuxian asked Jiang Yao, "You seem dissatisfied with the library design just now."
Jiang Yao didn't bother to condemn Duan Zhuxian's immoral behavior of snooping on his phone. He simply explained, "Architecture is public art. I value practicality more than artistry."
Duan Zhuxian nodded: "You want to say it's flashy but not practical."
"Yes." Jiang Yao sat up slightly straighter after receiving the correct response. "Although that work boldly adopted an inverted triangle design, its pursuit of innovation neglected the underlying support and material density. The load-bearing capacity is too poor to be put into practice. Its biggest use at present is to be made into a 3D model and placed in a beautiful window for passers-by to take photos, check in and post on WeChat Moments. At least in my opinion, it is just a work of art, not architecture."
When talking about his favorite topics, Jiang Yao's arrogant face became unusually calm and serious.
Duan Zhuxian tilted his head and glanced at Jiang Yao: "I didn't expect you to be so down-to-earth."
Jiang Yao rolled his eyes and said in a cold voice, "There are so many things you can't imagine. Who told you to be so isolated all day long and not take other people seriously at all?"
Duan Zhuxian laughed and did not correct the fallacy in Jiang Yao's words.
Jiang Yao was in high spirits at the moment, continuing to analyze the case and making verbal reformations, going into details about material selection, elevator layout, and cost control, his hands busy gesturing the prototype in his mind.
Like a bright star twinkling in the deep space, emitting a unique light.
Duan Zhuxian glanced over and, taking advantage of the night, stole a ray of starlight.
Jiang Yao talked without stopping halfway through, and suddenly realized that he seemed to be talking to himself, and Duan Zhuxian was probably tired of listening to him.
"Forget it, you don't understand, why should I talk to you about this?"
Jiang Yao muttered something, and his body, which was tense due to excitement, gradually softened like a deflated ball.
After curling up in his car seat, he casually put on his hood, pulled down the brim to cover his eyes, and pretended to sleep.
The black car sped along the straight road.
In the distant sky, the stingy stars hide themselves in the clouds.
Arriving home, Jiang Yao rushed upstairs in high spirits, but was stopped by Duan Zhuxian halfway: "Go to bed early, you still have to get the marriage certificate tomorrow."
"I know, I know." Jiang Yao pushed away Duan Zhuxian's arm that was blocking his way, his tone as perfunctory as possible.
"Don't stay up late."
Standing behind Jiang Yao, Duan Zhuxian reminded him again.
Jiang Yao paused as he pushed the door open, feeling guilty. He was indeed planning to draw up a plan to modify the exhibits he had seen today.
"Ma'am, you're addicted, aren't you?"
After saying this in a bad mood, Jiang Yao quickly went back to the bedroom.
*
The next morning, Jiang Yao was awakened by Duan Zhuxian. There was a brick-like architectural reference book next to his pillow, a pile of messy drawings on his desk, and his computer was in standby mode.
Duan Zhuxian was not surprised at all when he walked in.
Jiang Yao half-opened his eyes and vaguely saw a figure in a well-tailored suit beside the bed. He closed his eyes again and murmured a word: "Sleepy."
He has a good bone structure and a high degree of facial folds. His face is only the size of a palm when viewed from the front, with his mouth tucked into the quilt. His speaking tone is different from his usual arrogant one, and there is a softness in it that comes from the Jiangnan water towns.
The Jiang family moved here from the south. Two years ago, when Duan Zhuxian was on a business trip in the provincial capital of Jiang Yao's hometown, he made a special stopover to visit the small town where Jiang Yao was born. The town has beautiful mountains and rivers and clusters of flowers. It is a good place to raise a family.
Feeling a slightly cold and evil hand trying to uncover his warm quilt, Jiang Yao grabbed the quilt with both hands and wrapped himself tightly like a shrimp: "Can you let me sleep for a while longer..."
It was rare to hear Jiang Yao acting like a spoiled child with him, so Duan Zhuxian's heart softened. He patted the quilt and said coaxingly, "I've already let you sleep for an extra hour."
In the end, Jiang Yao sat up despite Duan Zhuxian's gentle but firm wake-up call.
"Why don't we get the certificate another day?"
Jiang Yao said in a daze, the red highlights on the back of his head sticking up in a mess, twitching like a little tail as he dozed off, and his whole body exuded a naughty aura.
Duan Zhuxian maintained his bent posture, and helplessly supported the staggering person in front of him: "My grandfather asked a master to calculate an auspicious day. After today, we have to wait another three years."
Jiang Yao's sleepy eyes suddenly brightened when he heard this: "Isn't that great?"
Duan Zhuxian stopped talking nonsense and ruthlessly dragged the man out of the bed.
Jiang Yao reluctantly put on his slippers, took a step, fell down, and was so sleepy that his head went straight to the underworld. Just when he was about to lie down again when Duan Zhuxian was not paying attention, he was quickly caught by the other party.
Duan Zhuxian didn't even blink, he grabbed the slippery little fox by the waist and put it into the bath, pinching its waist.
Realizing something, Jiang Yao took a deep breath and woke up from his sleepiness.
"What are you doing?"
"Seeing you're so sleepy, let me help you wake up."
Duan Zhuxian acted kind-hearted as he hugged Jiang Yao's limp body from behind and stared at his slightly trembling eyelashes.
Forget it, someone brought it to your door, so don’t refuse it.
Jiang Yao simply narrowed his eyes and leaned into Duan Zhuxian's arms, but he couldn't control himself.
He was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously turned around to see Duan Zhuxian's stunned expression. Then, a smile flashed in his black eyes and quickly spread to the corners of his eyes and eyebrows.
Jiang Yao was furious: "You, what are you laughing at?"
Duan Zhuxian spoke frankly: "I didn't expect it to be so fast."
Jiang Yao: "..."
Duan Zhuxian slowly took out a tissue and considerately helped Jiang Yao tidy up his clothes. Then he patted Jiang Yao's butt, indicating that he could move, as considerately as if he were a child.
Jiang Yao's face flushed, and he almost bit his back teeth. He felt that his dignity as a man was severely damaged. He ignored Duan Zhuxian until he got on the car to the Civil Affairs Bureau.
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