Chapter 18 Happy New Year, Wen Ling!
Shang Chen: "Are you sure?"
Wen Ling: "......."
She wasn't sure.
Wen Ling softened her voice and subconsciously whined to him, "But...it really hurts."
She even took a picture of her wound in front of the mirror and sent it to him: "I'm not lying to you."
Before I turned on the voice message, I thought she would stubbornly continue to act shamelessly.
A sweet voice came from the speaker, surrounding Shang Chen in a stereo. Shang Chen clutched his heart.
I couldn't take it anymore, so I vented with a couple of rude remarks before pressing the record button and solemnly agreeing to her request.
"That's great, Shang Chen, you're such a kind person!"
It was even sweeter than before, yet not at all pretentious.
Shang Chen's temple twitched, and he endured it for a while on the sofa.
He then threw down his phone, turned and walked into the bathroom, looking embarrassed and awkward.
...
On New Year's Eve, fireworks in the countryside burned from morning till night.
Wen Ling got up at five in the morning to eat New Year's Eve dinner. After paying New Year's visits and receiving lucky money, she went upstairs for a nap.
After lunch, I barely glanced at my phone before my brothers dragged me to the card table.
During this time, Shang Chen called, but she didn't answer.
I took a picture of the card table and sent it to him when I had a spare moment: [We agreed to have a day off today!]
Shang Chen smiled helplessly, zoomed in and out on the half-exposed hand in the photo, looking at it repeatedly before finally saving it: [I understand.]
Around midnight, fireworks were already going off in the surrounding area.
The Wen family members stopped what they were doing and carried out the fireworks that had been prepared in advance from the warehouse.
More than a dozen of them, of various sizes, were placed in the open space at the entrance.
Wen Ling and her nephew were setting off sparklers together nearby.
What was originally a pleasant and harmonious scene was suddenly interrupted by the simultaneous ignition of more than a dozen fireworks.
Her nephew was so frightened that he clung to her leg and cried loudly. Wen Ling couldn't soothe him, so she picked him up and rushed to her older brother and sister-in-law for help.
Her sister-in-law took her phone, which was charging in the living room, and said, "Lingling, this person has called you several times. Answer it."
The clock struck twelve. She answered the call, covered her ears, and looked up at the fireworks bursting in the sky: "Hello?"
It was very quiet across from him, so quiet it didn't feel like New Year's Eve. Wen Ling inexplicably sensed a hint of loneliness in him.
Shang Chen parted his thin lips slightly: "Wen Ling, Happy New Year."
"Happy New Year." Wen Ling asked, puzzled, "Don't you set off fireworks where you're from?"
If I remember correctly, their old house is in the suburbs of the city, so it should be okay to put it there.
Shang Chen smiled and said, "I'm in my apartment downtown, I haven't gone home."
Wen Ling was taken aback: "Ah...you're spending the New Year alone? What, you didn't go home?"
She asked the question without thinking.
Shang Chen showed no other emotion: "I don't want to go home, I don't want to face my dad's illegitimate children."
It was so natural, as if it weren't about his own business.
Wen Ling paused, her thoughts finally shifting from the fireworks: "I'm sorry..."
It seems I inadvertently touched on something painful for him.
Shang Chen chuckled lightly: "Why are you apologizing to me? It wasn't your fault."
Wen Ling scratched her head, unsure of what to say. Not far away, Wen He was going around wishing people a Happy New Year and asking for red envelopes.
Upon arriving at Wen Ling's place, he didn't even notice that she was on the phone, and simply shoved a large stack of red envelopes he had received into her hands: "Sister, Happy New Year! These red envelopes are all for you!"
Wen Ling's smile was almost uncontrollable, but remembering that she was on the phone, she restrained herself slightly: "Happy New Year, thank you, Xiao He."
Wenhe went to set off fireworks again.
After a moment of silence, Shang Chen suddenly called her name: "Wen Ling, where are you now?"
"Huh?" Wen Ling was taken aback by his question. "I'm at home."
Shang Chen licked his lips before tentatively asking, "May I visit your home for the New Year?"
"Coming to my house to wish me a Happy New Year?" So shocked was Wen Ling that she subconsciously repeated, "Why?"
"Because...I also want to set off fireworks."
-
According to custom, people should get up early on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
But Wen Ling was an exception. When she woke up groggily, there were already quite a few guests in the living room downstairs.
Shang Chen is one of them.
He came with an old man to offer New Year's greetings.
He didn't reveal his identity to the elders of the Wen family, and even wore a mask to keep a low profile.
Wen He, who knew him well, recognized him at a glance, but didn't expose him.
Only after the elders had gone to the tea room, leaving only a few unimportant juniors in the living room, did he dare to question Shang Chen: "What are you doing here?"
Shang Chen sat on the sofa, quite relaxed: "You're quite interesting. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, what do you think I'm here for?"
He pointed to the gifts he had piled up in the corner: "The gifts that were delivered to my door are still there."
Wen He couldn't guess what he was thinking. She just felt that this person was really difficult to deal with, even managing to chase her home during winter break.
"Go away, go away." He said impatiently. "Take all your things back. My sister is very busy and doesn't have time to see you."
Shang Chen remained unmoved and smiled, "It's alright, I have plenty of time, I can wait."
Wen He held his breath, but he couldn't really send the guest away. He sat on the single sofa next to him, staring intently at him.
Shang Chen chuckled softly to himself, and with a slight lift of his foot, Wen He stood up with a swift movement of his sword.
However, Shang Chen did not make any further moves. When Wen He realized that he was being teased on purpose, he became so angry that his face turned ashen.
"Wen He".
Wen Ling's voice came from behind.
Wen He said "Hey," and was about to turn around when he caught a glimpse of Shang Chen standing up, as if he was deliberately trying to go against him. Wen He blocked his view: "Are you going to the toilet? I'll take you there."
Wen Ling was unaware of the tense atmosphere here.
Wearing fluffy shoes, I went to the kitchen to find something to eat. My aunt had also gone back to her hometown for the Chinese New Year holiday. During this time, most of the meals were either cooked by the family or packed from restaurants.
Wen Ling found a sandwich that was still a little warm, heated up a cup of milk, and habitually went to lie down on the sofa in the living room to eat. Before she could even sit down, Wen He pushed her towards the stairwell.
"Wait, wait, what are you doing?!" Wen Ling nearly spilled the milk in her hand, glaring at Wen He. "I haven't finished my breakfast yet, what are you doing!"
Wen He felt guilty: "It's too noisy downstairs, sis. Why don't you eat upstairs? I'll bring it up for you."
There were indeed a few children running around in the living room, making a bit of noise, but it didn't bother them: "It's okay, I'll go upstairs after I finish eating."
The two are still locked in a stalemate.
Shang Chen couldn't wait any longer and took off his mask: "Wen Ling, Happy New Year."
…
Inside the greenhouse, Wen Ling was still in disbelief: "How could you just come like that?"
Shang Chen smiled as he drank the milk she handed him, "Are you happy that I did it?"
Wen Ling thought about it very seriously, and then nodded very seriously.
Last night, when Shang Chen said he wanted to come, Wen Ling didn't believe him.
I vaguely felt that this development was a little strange.
Remembering the unreliable things Wen He had said, when Shang Chen said he wanted to set off fireworks, she bit her lip and asked the same question: "Shang Chen, are you pursuing me?"
As the fireworks faded, Shang Chen's voice remained exceptionally clear: "So, what's your choice, Wen Ling? Will you pursue her?"
Wen Ling's mind was filled with only two answers: yes and no. When asked this question, she couldn't answer for a moment and felt her head was throbbing. After a while, she said somewhat blankly, "I don't know, I don't know what it feels like to like someone."
Shang Chen: "It's okay, there will always be an answer."
He paused for a moment, then asked, "So, do you hate it when I get close?"
Wen Ling answered honestly, "I don't dislike it."
She liked his clean and pure aura.
Shang Chen felt his chances were pretty good: "If I want more and do something really outrageous to you, will you be angry?"
"What outrageous thing did you do?"
A look of desire flashed in Shang Chen's eyes, and his Adam's apple bobbed.
I felt like I was lying to a child, who didn't understand anything: "I can't be sure right now, can you tell me what you hate the most?"
Wen Ling replied without hesitation: "I hate it when people lie to me, I really, really hate it."
This reminded Shang Chen of the time she was scammed by the agency. Even though she was angry, she could only ask him, feeling wronged, why someone she trusted so much would be so cruel as to cheat her.
Girls who grow up under the protection of their families are truly innocent and exceptionally well-behaved.
“I can guarantee that something like that won’t happen to us,” Shang Chen said with extreme patience. “Anything else?”
"...It's gone."
She couldn't think of anything else for the time being.
Shang Chen was just thinking that he would probably have to pursue her in a different way after school started. He didn't want to keep pursuing her like this, so he wanted to give her a heads-up: "If anything I do in the future makes you uncomfortable, just tell me, okay? I'll correct it in time."
This feeling was strange, but Wen Ling couldn't quite put her finger on what was strange about it. Was Shang Chen always this sincere to everyone?
…
When the eldest brother Wen Zan and the second brother Wen Heng returned from their outing, they saw Wen He sitting on the sofa with a long face and a livid expression. The children nearby were afraid to enter his area for fear of getting beaten up.
Wen Zan walked over and ruffled his hair, saying, "What are you thinking about? You look so pale. Did you get scolded again?"
Wen He looked indignant: "I'd rather have been the one scolded!"
Wen Zan chuckled, "Oh, it seems this matter is quite serious."
The heating was on at home. Wen Heng took off his down jacket and threw it on the sofa. He rubbed his hands together like a fly rubbing its legs and went upstairs: "Lingling should be awake by now. I haven't seen her for so long. I wonder if she misses her second brother."
Wen Heng, who got married in the first month of last year, did something big behind his family's back in October: he divorced his sister-in-law, with whom he had an arranged marriage. When his family found out, they beat him so badly that they broke two feather dusters.
I thought that was the end of it, but who knew that at the end of the year, he went crazy again and wanted to win back his second sister-in-law. He even stayed at his ex-wife's house during the Chinese New Year and didn't come back.
Wen He originally wanted to say that he had woken up a long time ago, but he was too busy to see him right now. Suddenly, he remembered something, his eyes lit up, and he mysteriously tugged at his arm: "Second brother, come on, I'll take you to find them."
Wen Zan smiled helplessly and went to the tea room where the elders were discussing matters.
Inside the greenhouse, Wen Ling and Shang Chen were chatting and laughing happily, creating a wonderful atmosphere. Wen He, watching from the sidelines, felt a pang of jealousy: "Second brother, I bet my sister has long forgotten about you by now."
Wen Heng didn't have time to be angry right now. He just looked at that profile, rubbed his chin, and frowned slightly: "Why do I feel like that kid looks a little familiar?"
Wen He curled his lip: "Shang Chen, the son of the richest man in G City."
"Holy crap?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
