Episode 30 Old Harbor
After Eric's failed cover-up last time, Jiang Shu had to go home for dinner this week as an apology.
Before leaving on Friday evening, Xu Yiwei took the opportunity to come over and report -
"Boss Jiang, that woolen coat has been processed and will be delivered tonight."
Talking about this, he thought of how Lin Ying rejected him this weekend, so he said, "Let's leave it at home first," and then he took the car keys and left home.
With the last rays of sunset, Jiang Shu's car drove into the Jiang family residence.
In the yard, a brand new and unfamiliar Aston Martin suddenly appeared - such a flashy style did not look like a new one bought by the parents. It was obvious that a distinguished guest was coming to visit tonight.
As soon as I entered the entrance hall, I put on the disposable slippers prepared by the nanny Gui Sao. The furnishings of the living room on the first floor imitated the complicated decoration of classical Rococo. The strong European style was out of touch with the current aesthetic trend.
This style has not changed since he can remember. Jiang Yueling likes this so-called bright and dazzling style that suits the general public.
"Ashu is back? President Jiang and the others are in the restaurant, waiting for you to start the meal."
Whenever he returns to this home, he will always be "Ashu", and there is only one "Ms. Jiang" in this home, that is, his mother, Jiang Yueling.
He glanced at the shoe cabinet in the entrance hall and saw that it was full of Jiang Yueling's shoes, while Lin Jidong's leather shoes were almost all piled in the corner, covered in dust.
"Isn't my dad home?"
"Oh, Mr. Lin has been traveling a lot lately."
The nanny responded awkwardly while leading him to the restaurant. When the door opened, Jiang Shu didn't even recognize her face. Suddenly, the other party made a comment and immediately started to talk.
"Oh, what a month old! Your son looks so good."
The accent is just like a Cantonese wonton wrapped in Shanghainese filling.
The noble lady who was speaking had a smile on her face, and was wearing a silk haute couture dress that was as smooth as water. From her hair to her fingertips, she exuded exquisiteness and elegance. At a glance, she could make Jiang Yueling beside her look dim.
"Ashu, that's Aunt Nong Suqin, do you still remember her?"
Luo Suqin, now full name Song Luo Suqin, was Jiang Yueling's best friend during their school days. They were inseparable from class and after school. They got the same answers wrong when copying homework, and were finally criticized together by the class teacher, becoming a "double-sided tape duo."
Later, this pair of double-sided tape stuck to each other and went to Fudan University together to study accounting. However, Jiang Yueling had to drop out of school because she gave birth to a child out of wedlock, and her life took a sharp turn for the worse...while Luo Suqin's life was almost smooth sailing. After graduation, she joined an accounting firm in Hong Kong, and thus met Song Qihui, an investment tycoon in Hong Kong at that time.
Three years later, she, an accountant girl from the mainland, unexpectedly transformed herself into the formal Mrs. Song. This marriage caused quite a stir in the Hong Kong media at the time. Some mocked her and some quarreled with her. To put it nicely, they said that Mr. Song had many affairs outside but the red flag remained at home; to put it bluntly, they said that this mainland girl was a scapegoat. Everyone knew that Song Qihui had a bad reputation in his private life, and marrying a wife with a clean family background and no background was also a way for him to whitewash himself. He both established a chastity arch and isolated a lot of assets.
Now Song Sheng is over 60 years old and has only one daughter with his wife, Song Qi, who is sitting in another corner of the restaurant. However, her outfit is completely different from her mother's. She is wearing yoga clothes and a headband casually wrapped around her wrist, as if she just came out of the gym and came to their house for dinner.
Seeing Jiang Shu push the door, she stood up, put on an official yet charming smile, extended her hand generously, and spoke in a Shanghainese dialect with a strong Hong Kong flavor.
"Mr. Jiang, thank you for taking care of me in Hong Kong."
Unexpectedly, he would see Song Qi in his own restaurant. Jiang Shu instantly guessed his mother's purpose for the night. Unfortunately, in front of outsiders, he could only play along. He gently touched the other person's palm with his fingers and reminded him in a deep voice:
"Miss Song can speak Mandarin."
Luo Suqin laughed, "Qiqi's Shanghainese has been messed up by the bilingual education her father and I give her. She can't even speak pidgin."
Luo Suqin has been in Hong Kong for 30 years. In order to facilitate communication, she is used to speaking Cantonese. She has not returned to the mainland for many years, and her local accent now inevitably carries some personal connotations.
"Mommy, you shouldn't say that. I can now speak a few words of Shanghainese with you, thanks to Jiang Sheng for helping me correct my pronunciation."
Song Qi deliberately spoke coquettishly to her mother, but her eyes rested on Jiang Shu's face with a deep meaning. This was not the first time the two of them had looked into each other's eyes. In this unexpected moment, Jiang Shu seemed to be brought back to that bustling and cramped city, completely immersed in the subtropical rain, feeling hot and tedious, unable to see the truth...
——
He met Song Qi at a cruise ship dinner.
As a newly arrived mainland investor, Jiang Shu knew very well that if he wanted to make a name for himself in the Hong Kong circle, he would have to build up public opinion for it. Song Qi worked for the extremely influential Hong Kong financial media - the boss behind it was naturally his own family.
Jiang Shuzi came to this dinner just for Song Qi.
At that time, he felt that it was harmless to play the emotional card with a woman.
That night, they discussed everything from film and literature to art appreciation, from the global economy to the relationship between Hong Kong stocks and Nasdaq...
So after getting off the boat that day, public transportation had long since ceased and the lights of Central had dimmed, but the two of them still had a lot to talk about. Song Qi took the initiative to invite: "There's a nice bar in Lan Kwai Fong, why don't you go sit in for a while?"
It was past midnight when we came out of the bar.
Jiang Shu offered to take her home, but she said, "You can't take me home for now, but I can take you home."
The crisscrossing stone steps of the rugged streets, the ups and downs of the slopes and dark alleys, Song Qi, in her stilettos, landed on the stone slabs with some dissatisfaction. It wasn't long before the blisters on her heels finally taught her a lesson. Under the soft yellow night light, Jiang Shu came forward to support her, and she almost fell into his arms...
In the split second when they looked up at each other, she thought he would kiss her, but he didn't. He just glanced at her, straightened her body, and allowed her to lean on his body without losing the sense of proportion. Ten seconds later, a taxi stopped on the one-way street in front of them.
He acted like a gentleman, helping the person into the car and saying, "It's been a pleasure chatting with you tonight. But it's too late now, so I won't invite you to my house."
For Jiang Shu, flirting doesn't have to come easily, but he can master the timing when necessary.
He used to disdain such tactics, but Song Qi's background should not be underestimated. As the only daughter of the Song family consortium, she chose the media industry because of her interest and became a journalist as she wished, focusing on biographies of financial figures in electronic publications. She has written for many large and small companies, with sharp words and tricky angles. Although she has been criticized for being exaggerated and provocative, in the eyes of the new generation, such verbal criticism and the spirit of daring to praise and scold are very popular.
The two became familiar with each other since then. Song Qi wrote the article for Jiang Shu's activities in Hong Kong, which effectively created momentum for his successful opening of the Southeast Asian market.
The reason why Jiang Shu was able to make friends with Pierre was thanks to Song Qi.
That day, Song Qi invited him to the exhibition. When they met, he first praised his mother for her admiration of Pierre's painting style. Pierre, full of confidence, did not forget to imitate the Chinese people's humility and responded politely:
"It's my 'blessing' to have Mrs. Song spend so much money on me. I heard she's from Shanghai. I'm going to Shanghai next month to attend an international art exhibition. This will be my first time there, so I'll have to ask her about the local food and fun things to do."
Upon hearing this, Song Qi pointed at Jiang Shu and said, "Why don't you ask him, a Shanghainese?"
Jiang Shu could only understand but not speak Cantonese. Sometimes when he met someone who was not good at speaking Mandarin, he would just communicate in English. Pierre was a typical example. He looked at Jiang Shu and introduced his hometown to this French-Hong Konger in an official and polite manner. Song Qi listened attentively, smiled, and acted as a translator from time to time.
After introducing the local characteristics to Pierre, Jiang Shucai asked Song Qi seriously:
"Is your mother also from Shanghai?"
Song Qi nodded lightly, "Yes, she has been in Hong Kong for many years, and she still often curses in Shanghainese. But I can't do that. I can only listen but not speak."
Afterwards, the three of them stopped by a nearby ice cream parlor for dinner. However, during the meal, the room was crowded and noisy, and the waiter, in a careless and noisy moment, spilled a whole cup of iced lemon tea directly onto Song Qi, soaking half of his hair. The scene was as embarrassing as it could be...
Jiang Shu took off his coat first and put it on her. Song Qi's sticky wet hair smelled of sour lemon. She was a little bit unbearable and asked Jiang Shu:
"Is your apartment nearby? Can I borrow your bathroom to take a shower?"
What happened next seemed self-evident. Pierre tactfully left, and Jiang Shu took her back to the apartment upstairs.
He brought her a clean towel and said, "I don't have any clothes for girls at home, so please help yourself."
Land is very expensive in Hong Kong, and the apartment itself is not very big. While she was closing the bathroom door, Jiang Shu went to the island and looked out at the buildings of Central. The water from the shower room fell like raindrops, hitting the marble floor, cluster by cluster, drop by drop...
Like a battle outpost, when the sound of water suddenly stopped, before he could sort out his thoughts, a pair of white arms suddenly surrounded him from behind, and her wet hair, which was filled with fragrance, was dripping with water droplets, seeping through the barrier of a layer of shirt, making his back shiver. He lowered his head and caught a glimpse of a pair of beautiful legs, straight and sexy. At this moment, she was only wearing a shirt - which she took from his closet.
"Who told you to touch my closet?"
"Didn't you say you didn't have any girls' clothes and let me do as I pleased?"
Song Qi pulled off his tie at that moment, and he also thought of Lin Ying's face at that moment.
She was small, but very strong, pulling the back of his neck so hard that it hurt. The kiss itself was very sloppy, and her tongue took the initiative to penetrate, making him feel like he was being forced to kiss...
He took advantage of the situation and followed the rhythm, his mind full of one thought - she was the daughter of the Song family, and for his own purpose, it would be okay to sleep with her, each of them would get what they wanted.
The person who has always taken the initiative was willing to give up the dominant position this time.
The last person who asked him to do this was Lin Ying.
He was thinking about her again, damn it.
She was very good at pleasing others. Although she was usually calm and quiet, she was a completely different person in bed. She could bewitch him and drain all his energy...
His senses were infinitely magnified, her breath flowed on his skin, and the air conditioning in the room was too strong. Only then did he realize that the person who was intimate with him at this moment was Song Qi.
He can see nothing that he doesn't want to realize, he can pretend that everything is real.
Until the other party declared war on him and held hands with him to indulge in pleasure, but this time he was destined not to empathize, because there was no ring on the other party's finger, and he could no longer feel the taboo.
At the moment of relief, he woke up completely. He could no longer deceive himself. This person was not Lin Ying, but just his desire.
He suddenly hated himself for being a man.
After the excitement, he could only comfort himself: it was just a routine matter.
After that, Jianglin Group also followed the Song family's vines and climbed all over the Greater Bay Area and Southeast Asia... I never thought that one day he would use "climbing into bed" to achieve his business goals.
But he didn't expect that Song Qi would take the initiative to propose a relationship, but Jiang Shu reminded her more than once:
"You'll be disappointed if you date me."
Song Qi disagreed, "Then it depends on who disappoints whom first."
After that, the two officially started dating, and Jiang Shu made three rules with her: not to use their relationship to hype the relationship, and not to use it as a matchmaker.
At this point, the two people's circles became increasingly similar. Song Qi spoke well of him to stir up public opinion, and he also generously followed suit, actively giving priority to the mainland celebrities she wanted to interview and write about.
Song Qi is a typical Hong Kong girl with a strong personality. She takes the initiative in everything, and even her life is mostly controlled by her. She always has unlimited energy, whether it is life or work. Although she works for her own family, she personally goes to the news and follows the gossip. She can go to the world of fame and fortune with its jewels and gems, and go to the rusty dock factories.
My favorite isn't a five-star Michelin meal or a steak with Australian lobster, but a small 30-square-meter beef offal restaurant that's been open for over 30 years, and the sweet soup shop next door that can't even hang a sign...
She still remembered the first time she took Jiang Shu there. As soon as they sat down, a work call came in. Jiang Shu stood up to answer it and asked her to order whatever she wanted. The boss quickly brought the sweet soup and even sighed to Song Qi when he saw Jiang Shu.
"Why are you so handsome?"
Song Qi handed him a plastic spoon with a beaming look on his face.
"This shop has really good mango sago, you should try it!"
The two people in front of him looked forward to the positive reviews after tasting it. Although Jiang Shu didn't want to spoil their fun, he had to tell the truth when he smelled the bright mango aroma in the bowl:
"Sorry, I'm allergic to mangoes."
…
After that, every time Song Qi went out with him, she would carefully remind him about his diet. She said that people in Hong Kong eat more mangoes, and some desserts may not have the ingredients clearly written on them, so you have to ask clearly about the ingredients.
Jiang Shu's Cantonese was still fake at that time, and every time he sang Eason's songs, he would be ridiculed by Song Qi for his accent. Later, under her guidance, he was able to sing "Under the Mount Fuji" completely, and Song Qi also learned Shanghainese well, although it still sounded clumsy.
That was one of the rare peaceful moments in Hong Kong. For the first time, he had a real sense of the word "like-minded". Similar family backgrounds, similar ideas, and a moment when passion and warmth went hand in hand, how could it not be a perfect match?
For countless moments, he was in a trance - perhaps this feeling could also be called love?
Until last Christmas, when the two of them went to the top of the mountain to watch the countdown of the fireworks, when the last cluster of fireworks reached its climax, she suddenly asked him, as if inspired:
"Jiang Shu, do you want to marry me?"
——
That happened half a year ago. Jiang Shu did not give a reply at that time, and Song Qi did not force him later, so the matter should have ended without any follow-up.
However, at this moment, looking at the Song mother and daughter sitting opposite her dining table, the mother was talking and laughing with them, obviously wanting the two to rekindle their old relationship.
In order to cater to the tastes of the Song family mother and daughter, this dinner was a mixture of Shanghai and Hong Kong. The fresh, fragrant and delicious meat was covered with rich and red sauce, which was a bit too much.
Jiang Shu ate blandly, smiled stiffly, and spoke sparingly throughout. But Song Qi was different. Not only did she cooperate well with the hints in the eyes of the two mothers, she also took advantage of the moment when Jiang Shu was least prepared to test him. Her toes had already become numb from her intentional or unintentional tests.
After finishing the meal, while Song Qi was using the restroom, Jiang Shu finally lost his patience and waited outside the sink, closing the door and pretending to question him, but the other party got there first and started provoking him.
"What? You want to have an affair with me here?"
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