Chapter 223 A Belated Appreciation
While Jiang Ranxing was still somewhat stunned, Fu Shenyuan walked over, his eyes fixed on her face like those of a hawk.
"What...did you just say?"
Jiang Ranxing then came to her senses, blinked, and asked in confusion, "What?"
Fu Shenyuan stared intently at her, his eyes surging with emotion. He wasn't sure if he had misheard, but he clearly heard... that name.
"Who were you calling just now? Who were you saying those things to?" Fu Shenyuan asked in a trembling voice.
Jiang Ranxing was fully awake. She dismissed the fragments and images that had just appeared in her mind as hallucinations.
“I didn’t say anything,” Jiang Ranxing turned to leave. “I don’t want to argue with you anymore. I’m too tired. Let’s drive back.”
Jiang Ranxing felt unwell and wanted to go back to rest.
She had other things to do after returning home, and wasting time here with Fu Shenyuan had made her lose interest in even the most beautiful scenery.
However, Fu Shenyuan pulled her back forcefully.
Before Jiang Ranxing could even stand up, she was pulled back into Fu Shenyuan's arms by this force.
Fu Shenyuan held her waist tightly, pinched her chin, and forced her to look up, saying, "Who were you supposed to say those things to? What do you know? Tell me."
Jiang Ranxing was getting really annoyed by Fu Shenyuan's antics. She replied irritably, "What? What did I say? I was just a little distracted and said something casually. If you want to know something, just ask. I'm not in the mood to keep arguing with you."
Looking at her, Fu Shenyuan wondered if he was overthinking things.
But the words of Teacher Zhou and Grandpa were still ringing in his ears, and he asked Tan Shen to investigate the matter, although there has been no progress yet.
But at this moment, Jiang Ranxing's words, combined with the suspicion that those who knew about these things were related to him and Jiang Ranxing, made him even more suspicious.
Could it be that Jiang Ranxing also knows something?
Fu Shenyuan didn't want to beat around the bush, so he asked directly, "You mentioned a name, Brother Xiaochuan, right?"
Jiang Ranxing looked at him, thought for a moment, and nodded: "I think so, is there a problem?"
Jiang Ranxing really didn't understand what Fu Shenyuan was asking. To her, it seemed like Fu Shenyuan was talking about something that had nothing to do with her and that she wasn't interested in.
Fu Shenyuan's gaze made Jiang Ranxing even more confused.
He said, "The name 'Brother Xiaochuan' is what the little girl who accompanied and saved me on this beach called me back then."
Fu Shenyuan was lost in those memories.
"She told me that she was willing to be an eternal star shining on the mountains and rivers, and that she would always be with me, and that there would never be a day when she dimmed and went out."
Fu Shenyuan looked down into Jiang Ranxing's eyes, trying to find the truth he wanted to know.
"That's a term of address that only she and I know. How would you know it?"
Fu Shenyuan looked at her, and his heart started racing.
Perhaps he is getting closer to some truth.
Could it be that Jiang Ranxing's character also appeared in what happened back then?
Could it be...?
Fu Shenyuan had a suspicion he didn't believe, and he desperately needed to hear Jiang Ranxing's explanation.
However, Jiang Ranxing didn't think she had anything to say in her defense.
“I’ve already told you, it was just something I said in a daze. If you insist on taking it seriously, then you can investigate it yourself. Anyway, as you said, my memory is messed up, and I don’t know if I know anything or not.”
Jiang Ranxing chuckled.
"You're curious, but I'm not. So, do whatever you want. Now, let me go, and then we'll go back, understand?"
Jiang Ranxing pushed Fu Shenyuan's chest, this time with almost no force, and pushed him away.
Jiang Ranxing walked towards the car without any hesitation, not wanting to get entangled with him any longer.
Fu Shenyuan was stunned for a moment, then followed him over.
On the way back, Jiang Ranxing didn't want to have any more conversation with him, and also felt a little unwell, so she fell asleep in the car.
While waiting at a red light, Fu Shenyuan pulled a blanket from the back seat, covered Jiang Ranxing with it, and stared at her face, lost in thought for a moment.
The doubts in Fu Shenyuan's heart grew louder and louder, and once they started, they were hard to suppress.
Perhaps things really weren't as simple as his intuition told him.
When we returned to the villa, it was already getting late. The villa was already brightly lit, and the entire villa area was brightly lit.
Jiang Ranxing had been awake for a while, but she was too lazy to get up. As soon as Fu Shenyuan parked the car, she got out immediately.
When Jiang Ranxing was about to go upstairs to rest, she noticed a sudden voice coming from the living room.
At first glance, Jiang Ranxing saw Lin Xuesha in the living room, with Fu Xingyi sitting next to her. He seemed to be laughing happily, having overheard something.
Jiang Ranxing looked at them expressionlessly.
Fu Xingyi noticed Jiang Ranxing first, quickly ran over from the sofa, and grabbed her hand.
"Mom, where did you go today? You're so late. Are you hungry? Have you eaten? Yiyi has been waiting for you to eat dinner. I didn't eat first."
Jiang Ranxing looked at the little figure beside him, thinking about how he smiled at Lin Xuesha.
Jiang Ranxing pulled his hand away.
Fu Xingyi was somewhat stunned: "Mom, don't you want to eat with me?"
Jiang Ranxing shook her head: "I'm not hungry. Go eat by yourself. Mom is going upstairs to rest."
After saying that, Jiang Ranxing turned around and went upstairs. Just as he stepped onto the first step of the stairs, Lin Xuesha's voice came over.
"Ranxing, Yiyi has been waiting for you for a long time. If you're not going to have dinner with him, then I'll go have dinner with Yiyi."
Jiang Ranxing chuckled and turned to look at her from the stairs.
"Miss Lin, if you enjoy having dinner with my son at other people's homes so much, I won't stop you. Do as you please."
Lin Xuesha originally wanted to deflate Jiang Ranxing's arrogance, but she didn't expect that Jiang Ranxing would put her in the position of an outsider who didn't know her true strength with just one sentence.
Lin Xuesha was not willing to accept this. After scoffing twice, she beckoned to Fu Xingyi.
"Yiyi, your mother doesn't want to eat with you. Come here, Aunt Xuesha will take you to eat."
Lin Xuesha even gave Jiang Ranxing a provocative look.
Jiang Ranxing disdained these petty tricks right under her nose. She originally intended to go straight upstairs, but now she stood on the stairs with her arms crossed, watching them downstairs.
Then they saw Fu Xingyi reject Lin Xuesha.
"Aunt Xue Sha, I want to eat with my mom. The kitchen made her favorite soup today."
Fu Xingyi looked at Jiang Ranxing and said, "Mom, let me take the soup to your room. Would you like some?"
This time, Jiang Ranxing didn't refuse and nodded.
Fu Xingyi immediately ran happily to the kitchen and asked the maid to serve him a bowl of soup.
In the living room, only Lin Xuesha and Jiang Ranxing on the stairs remained, staring at each other.
Lin Xuesha felt embarrassed and walked to the stairs, looking up at Jiang Ranxing with disdain and mockery in her eyes.
"Do you think that just because you've become the mistress of the house, you can put me in a superior position? Jiang Ranxing, let me tell you, you're overthinking it. You'll never be able to step on my head."
Jiang Ranxing felt that Lin Xuesha was like a clown at this moment, and she didn't even want to waste her energy arguing with a clown.
Jiang Ranxing calmly said, "I don't want to be the mistress of this house at all. It's your brother Shen Yuan who won't let me go. The key is Fu Shen Yuan, not me. If you want to cause trouble, you should go find him."
Jiang Ranxing gave a cold sneer, and as she glanced to the side, she saw Fu Shenyuan walk in.
He probably heard what she just said.
Her words were actually quite unpleasant, clearly placing Fu Shenyuan in a subordinate position. Generally speaking, Fu Shenyuan would definitely lose face if he was humiliated like that.
But since these words came from Jiang Ranxing, Fu Shenyuan couldn't get angry at all.
Fu Shenyuan walked over, but instead of greeting Lin Xuesha first, he looked at Jiang Ranxing.
"Are you going to rest right away? You should eat something tonight, otherwise you won't feel well, okay?" Fu Shenyuan asked.
Lin Xuesha felt a pang of jealousy as she watched him ignore her upon entering. She approached Fu Shenyuan and reached out to take his arm, but Fu Shenyuan deftly dodged her.
Lin Xuesha was a little embarrassed, but still smiled and said, "Shen Yuan, Ranxing said she doesn't really want to eat dinner. Let's go eat first, and then we can have someone bring it to Ranxing's room later."
At this moment, Fu Shenyuan had no desire to interact with Lin Xuesha at all. If Jiang Ranxing saw this, his already difficult-to-repair image would collapse even further.
He directly refused, stating clearly, "Xuesha, what brings you to our house? I didn't invite you."
After speaking, Fu Shenyuan glanced at Jiang Ranxing.
Jiang Ranxing remained largely expressionless; none of these people were worthy of her happiness, anger, or sadness.
Lin Xuesha was even more embarrassed now. Of course, she hadn't come at anyone's invitation. She had come because she was worried about Jiang Ranxing and Fu Shenyuan being together, but she didn't expect to be in this situation. It was so embarrassing that she couldn't back down.
Jiang Ranxing smiled, and after seeing Lin Xuesha's discomfitured expression, she went upstairs on her own, no longer in the mood to stand there and watch the show.
After seeing that Jiang Ranxing had gone upstairs to her bedroom, Fu Shenyuan sighed deeply.
Lin Xuesha seized the opportunity and clung to Fu Shenyuan, saying in a delicate voice, "I've been waiting for you here for a long time, just wanting to see you. I've missed you, Shenyuan."
Lin Xuesha used her usual trick of feigning weakness, but unexpectedly, Fu Shenyuan was no longer buying into that.
Fu Shenyuan maintained his distance from her and said in a deep voice, "Now that you're here, I have some questions for you. Let's talk."
Lin Xuesha immediately laughed: "Okay, what do you want to talk about?"
Fu Shenyuan pointed to the upstairs location: "Let's talk in the study; it's not convenient here."
Upon hearing that it was inconvenient, Lin Xuesha immediately thought of other options and nodded shyly.
Before going upstairs, Fu Shenyuan went to the kitchen and found Fu Xingyi.
"Yiyi, dinner will be ready soon, so eat first. Don't wait for your parents, Dad has some business to discuss."
Fu Shenyuan stroked Fu Xingyi's soft hair.
Fu Xingyi was still watching the chef simmer the soup when he heard Fu Shenyuan say this. He nodded obediently and said, "Okay, Dad, you go ahead and do your work. I'll bring the soup to Mom when it's ready."
Fu Shenyuan smiled and said, "Okay, be careful."
After leaving the kitchen, Fu Shenyuan and Lin Xuesha went to the study together.
Lin Xuesha thought that Fu Shenyuan would be more intimate with her when he brought her to the study, but unexpectedly, Fu Shenyuan really acted like he was doing business.
They sat on opposite sides of the desk. Fu Shenyuan looked at her calmly and asked, "Xue Sha, there's something I want to ask you, and I hope you can answer me honestly."
Lin Xuesha paused for two seconds: "Sure, Shen Yuan, I'll tell you everything you want to know, and everything I know."
After hearing Lin Xuesha's words, Fu Shenyuan continued to ask, "I want to know how you saved me during our childhood."
Lin Xuesha's expression froze for a moment. She was a little embarrassed: "Why did you suddenly bring this up? It's been so long."
"It's because it's been so long, and I don't remember much anyway, so I can only listen to what you have to say."
Fu Shenyuan's tone was very flat, making it impossible for Lin Xuesha to discern his true meaning.
Lin Xuesha naturally didn't want to bring up this topic, but if she didn't say anything at this moment, it would seem like she was guilty.
"Back then... back then, you accidentally slipped and fell on the beach, and I happened to see it and saved you. Shen Yuan, you know, we were both seriously injured back then, and I even developed a chronic weakness because of it."
As she spoke, Lin Xuesha coughed a few times to prove that she was indeed not feeling well, as if she was afraid that Fu Shenyuan would suspect her.
This time, Fu Shenyuan didn't take the initiative to show concern for her. Instead, he asked with a puzzled look, "I'm wondering why you went there. It's a rural area, not a place for you."
Lin Xuesha's mind immediately went into overdrive. Fu Shenyuan was actually taking this seriously today, which was definitely not a good sign.
Has Fu Shenyuan begun to have doubts?
Lin Xuesha panicked a little, her fingers twisting together, but she still smiled and said, "It's just a coincidence, there's no reason why. Maybe it was fate that sent me there just to meet you."
Lin Xuesha's explanation clearly failed to convince Fu Shenyuan.
He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, re-examining the strangeness of the person in front of him and the whole situation.
At this moment, Fu Shenyuan felt that something was wrong with all of this, that it didn't make sense, as if everyone was hiding a truth.
But what exactly was the truth? Fu Shenyuan's doubts grew stronger and stronger.
“Xue Sha,” Fu Shenyuan looked at her again, “I suddenly remembered recently that we seemed to have met before that, and you even gave me some food that you made yourself, what was it again?”
Lin Xuesha was unprepared for this. After a moment of silence, she said, "I think I made the cookies and candies myself, but it's been so long that I can't quite remember."
Fu Shenyuan paused and shook his head: "Indeed, it's normal to not remember things after a long time. I only remember a little bit myself. You cooked very well."
Lin Xuesha smiled shyly: "If you like it, I can make it for you another day."
Fu Shenyuan gave a cryptic smile and then said, "Xue Sha, you can go out now. I have a work call to make."
Lin Xuesha wisely left the study.
The moment Lin Xuesha closed the door, Fu Shenyuan's smile vanished completely, and he dialed Tan Shen's number.
"This matter needs further investigation. Things back then were definitely not like this now."
Although Tan Shen didn't know why, he agreed to everything.
Fu Shenyuan casually placed his phone on the desk, thinking about what Lin Xuesha had just said.
In fact, he had no memory of ever receiving any food.
Is it true, as Grandpa said, that his memory is faulty, or is the girl he remembers holding wildflowers and wearing a white dress... perhaps connected to Lin Xuesha in some other way?
Fu Shenyuan sat in the study for a while before leaving. As soon as he opened the study door, he saw Fu Xingyi carrying soup upstairs.
Fu Xingyi noticed him and said, "Dad, I'm going to bring Mom some soup. Do you want to come with me? I was just thinking of asking Mom to check my homework. Dad, would you like to come along?"
Fu Shenyuan thought for a moment, then walked over and took the soup from Fu Xingyi's hand: "Let's go, I'll go with you to find Mom."
"Okay, sure." Fu Xingyi looked very happy.
The father and son, one big and one small, stood at the door of Jiang Ranxing's bedroom. After knocking, they waited quietly and obediently.
When Jiang Ranxing opened the door, she saw one person carrying soup and the other holding homework, both waiting at her door for her permission.
Jiang Ranxing's immediate feeling was that she had been clung to by these two, father and son. They kept coming to see her one after the other.
Jiang Ranxing didn't seem to care at all and simply opened the bedroom door.
Fu Xingyi followed behind Jiang Ranxing ingratiatingly, saying, "Mom, try this soup, it's delicious, it's made with all my favorite ingredients."
Jiang Ranxing smelled the soup, and her stomach growled twice at that moment. She was indeed a little hungry. She didn't have the habit of mistreating or abusing herself, so she picked up the soup and took a couple of sips.
"Not bad," Jiang Ranxing said.
Fu Xingyi immediately became happy, jumping around as if he had discovered something particularly exciting.
While Jiang Ranxing was sitting at the small table drinking soup, Fu Xingyi took out his notebook and went over to her.
"Mom, this is the homework you checked for me last time. I've done the same one again. Could you take another look at it for me?"
Just as Fu Xingyi was about to put the workbook in front of Jiang Ranxing, a large hand snatched it away faster.
Fu Xingyi looked over and saw Fu Shenyuan holding his small notebook, looking down at it.
Fu Shenyuan said, "Don't disturb your mother while she's drinking soup. Dad will check you out."
Fu Xingyi was overjoyed, since Fu Shenyuan had never offered to check his homework before. He was so happy that he nuzzled up to Fu Shenyuan with his small body.
Jiang Ranxing glanced to the side and saw the father and son huddled together. Afraid of disturbing her, they even lowered their voices when talking about their homework, clearly trying to curry favor with her and get a place to stay.
Jiang Ranxing looked at them and chuckled softly.
She couldn't help but wonder, would bettoric affection and appreciation still be of any use?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com