Chapter 153 IF (Ancient to Modern) Time Travel (The Dog Chases His Wife) 8: Having won over Wu Juan, the two became a particularly loving yet ordinary couple in this world. Every day…
Having won over Wu Juan, the two became an exceptionally loving yet ordinary couple in this world. They wanted to be together all the time, practically blinding everyone with their affection.
Sometimes being too flamboyant is both a good thing and a bad thing. Shen Wanqing made no attempt to hide her relationship with the younger man, and at banquets and parties, she was often teased about it by her superiors and business partners.
But even with all the joking, everyone was still just socially acquainted. Knowing that Shen Wanqing was now taken, they wouldn't try to match her up like before, praising this person and that person, which only fueled Shen Wanqing's anger.
"Hello."
"So, is the game about to fall apart?"
"Okay. Come pick me up in twenty minutes."
"Ten minutes is about right. It's already so late. If we don't go back soon, we'll disturb your beauty sleep."
As the year draws to a close, there are more and more gatherings, and it's impossible for Shen Wanqing, with her rank, to bring Yulang to every single one. If she did, this promising young talent for the group would truly become Shen Wanqing's kept puppy.
So Yu Lang used himself as a driver. If Shen Wanqing had a drinking party, he would take her there first, and then he would find a shopping mall with a bookstore nearby to have dinner.
After finishing his meal, he would go into the bookstore and read all kinds of books. Anything he didn't know or had never encountered before was a new world to him.
When it's almost time, he can either call her to ask, or Shen Wanqing can send him a message and he can drive over to pick her up.
"How much did you drink tonight? Your face is so red."
"I only drank one cup, about 3 ounces. The air conditioning in the private room was on too high today, it was so stuffy."
Today's gathering wasn't with outsiders; two top leaders and several regional heads were having dinner together, discussing the plans to expand into Southeast Asia next year.
Shen Wanqing's original attitude towards this was always: I won't go, I won't ask, and you shouldn't try anything with me. Now that her mind has changed, her attitude is naturally different. After one meal, the leaders and colleagues all understood that Shen Wanqing was determined to go and expand her territory.
"If I really have to go there the year after next, what are your plans for your family?"
"What do you mean, what should we do? The Fang family's foreign trade company is doing quite well right now. If I go to work in Southeast Asia, I might be able to help them open up new markets. You won't object, will you?"
"What Fang family? From now on, it's your family. Don't keep bringing up those words. Look at how I treated my parents before. Even though I knew in my heart that they weren't blood relatives, I still treated them perfectly in every way."
Shen Wanqing's words make perfect sense. Yu Lang's life trajectory is different from hers, and he feels deep down that he is just Yu Lang.
As for Fang Yulang now, he's just getting started. He can get used to his colleagues calling him Xiao Fang when the company goes public, but it's still a bit of a stretch for him to genuinely consider himself Fang Yulang, or the son of the Fang family.
"Come back with me at the end of that year, meet our parents, and then we'll try to get married next spring."
“Fang… my family has already bought me a house here. I’ll live with my family, and they can move into that house. It’ll be easier to stay close and keep in touch.”
"We'll do whatever we want on weekdays, and on weekends, it's fine whether they come or we go back."
After thinking for a while, Yu Lang began to discuss next year's matters with Shen Wanqing in a consultative tone. Although he was talking about the Fang family, his first point was to finalize the marriage arrangements.
Shen Wanqing couldn't help but laugh. This old-fashioned man, despite his young and handsome appearance, still hadn't lost his sense of propriety and manners.
After the two got back together, they were so engrossed in their first time that they didn't care about anything else. After that, Yu Lang not only prepared two boxes of condoms at home, but also intentionally reduced the number of times they had sex.
Shen Wanqing knew that he felt that her being with him now was not legitimate, even though she had told him several times that they were just dating normally. He would just smile and not refute her, while continuing to plan how to get married as soon as possible.
She had no objection to this; once someone or something is decided, it doesn't need to be changed. Perhaps things will change in the future, but that's a matter for the future. Why waste happy days and create unnecessary trouble for yourself?
But! Shen Wanqing never expected things to change so quickly. This brat is so unpredictable; she absolutely refuses to marry him!
Before this person found him, Yu Lang was busy adapting to everything in this world, and he skipped many things and holidays that he considered unnecessary.
Now that Shen Wanqing is here, everything has changed. After all, life is just about having a lover, how can it be the same?
Yu Lang somehow found out that there would be fireworks by the river for New Year's Eve, and he insisted on dragging Shen Wanqing along to join in the fun. Shen Wanqing couldn't refuse him, so she could only nod and give in to his wishes.
I was originally planning to have dinner first, then go shopping, and if there was a good movie, I would watch one. After the movie, I would walk to the riverbank so I could catch the fireworks.
The arrangements were so perfect that they were both dumbfounded when New Year's Eve actually arrived.
With New Year's Day approaching, there wasn't much work on the Yulang project. He skipped work early in the afternoon to come back to the company to pick up his colleague. Shen Wanqing also secretly left early, so their dinner, which they had arranged in advance, went smoothly.
The location is very romantic; the top floor of the newest shopping mall overlooks the entire city center. The food is very down-to-earth, authentic Chongqing hot pot, so spicy that Yulang kept spitting out gasps and saying how satisfying it was.
Yu Lang still wasn't used to Western restaurants, but luckily Shen Wanqing didn't like them much either.
However, Lord Yu had his own romantic methods. Even at a hot pot restaurant, he still prepared an extremely vibrant bouquet of roses and had a master craftsman specially make a complete set of jewelry. In addition to a necklace, two bracelets, a ring, earrings, and a pair of hairpins.
"So much? Where did you get the money?"
"My project isn't busy right now; I've gone to do some side jobs."
When Yulang was living alone, he wasn't used to asking the Fang family for money. It was always Fang Yulang's mother who would call to ask her son if he had any money, and then they would send him some. What could that little bit of money do? It wasn't even enough for Yulang to buy two pairs of comfortable leather shoes.
"What kind of side job?"
"I do everything from mounting and appraising paintings to carving seals. Last month, I even helped someone copy a painting, and the fee was decent. I also forge knives for people. I'm better at that than those masters. If it weren't for the fact that this body is so precious, I could be a horse racer."
It's true that some things are just in your bones. Shen Wanqing came back, and apart from the initial discomfort, her life quickly returned to normal.
As for Grandma Shen, that really seems like something from a past life. It's not that she doesn't know the things Grandma Shen knows, it's just that she really can't remember them unless she's consciously trying to recall them during her daily work and life.
But Yu Lang is different; what's ingrained in him from birth is how to be a boss. The skills he possesses aren't nonexistent in modern times, it's just that ordinary people still can't access them.
Even if they do get access to these things, they mostly learn them gradually as they grow up. Unlike this guy, who's been immersed in these things since birth. Making money from them is practically his livelihood.
“My face looks too young. If I earned this much in ten years, I wouldn’t be making this much. Right now, I can only afford to buy you some small trinkets. Later, when I have more money, I’ll get you a complete headdress, and I’ll design the style myself.”
How can one describe Shen Wanqing's feelings? In her previous life, it's no exaggeration to say that money seemed to have become just a number to her; having more or less made little difference.
The same goes for jewelry and headwear. Later on, unless it was a particularly formal occasion, the ones we actually wore the most were still the same few sets. The rest of the pieces we bought each year were either given away or kept for Sui Ning and Jing Shao.
For this reason, Yu Lang even specially sought out several craftsmen in the south to make many designs exclusively for her. He always felt that it was not a good thing that Shen Wanqing had lost interest in those jewelry pieces. Everyone should have a hobby at least once in their life, otherwise, problems can easily arise over time.
All those exquisite and valuable jewelry and gold pieces remained in that world, and Shen Wanqing hadn't even thought of them once since she returned.
But at this moment, looking at the gold jewelry that Yu Lang had given her, she suddenly felt that she loved the person in front of her so much. She didn't know why, but she just really liked him.
"Do I look good wearing this?"
“It looks great. I discussed it with the goldsmith. His skill is barely acceptable, but his eye for detail is really lacking. When I have more free time, I can figure it out myself and make something better than this.”
Shen Wanqing had already taken the jewelry out of the box and put it on. It would be a waste to just leave the jewelry, which Yu Lang had worked so hard to earn, in a box. She had to wear it and show it off to everyone to justify his efforts.
The hot pot restaurant was bustling with noise, and even though they were just one table apart, it was impossible to hear what the two were saying. But not being able to hear didn't stop others from seeing the eye-catching, dazzling gold jewelry on Shen Wanqing's wrist.
Some people laughed heartily after seeing the photos; the handsome young couple was so pleasing to the eye, and just looking at them made them happy too. Others, however, felt a pang of jealousy and pinched their boyfriends' waists, realizing their New Year's gift hadn't been perfect and they'd need to come up with something extra.
All the joys and sorrows of life can pause for a moment on this night. Everyone hopes for a better year to come, which makes Shen Wanqing, who glances at the steaming heat of the entire shop, secretly sigh to Yu Lang that they really should go out for a stroll tonight and see the world.
Yu Lang watched Shen Wanqing's pretentious and sentimental demeanor, and nodded repeatedly like a sycophant, thinking that everything his great-grandmother said was right and had Zen-like wisdom and reason.
Then, on New Year's Eve, they found each other incredibly pleasing to the eye, like a perfect match, until they were dumbfounded after leaving the hot pot restaurant.
The hot pot restaurant was packed with people queuing up. Shen Wanqing glanced at the screen behind her that was calling out numbers and saw that, wow, the queue had already reached number 300.
The two squeezed through the mall, intending to find an open-air cafe or bar on the rooftop observation deck, but they were surprised to find that the outside was even more crowded than the inside, with people taking photos and doing all sorts of things. Shen Wanqing's heart skipped a beat; she had a premonition that tonight was going to be anything but simple.
There's nowhere to sit or stand on the rooftop, so let's go down. It'll be a good opportunity to digest our food. We'll walk around first, and when we get tired, we'll see if there's anywhere to sit and rest while waiting for the New Year's Eve fireworks show.
She had high hopes, but when she went downstairs, she found that there were people everywhere, even those waiting to cross the street. Shen Wanqing was used to this scene, but Yu Lang was quite frightened.
The two walked with the crowd, saying every now and then that they should walk a little further and see if there was a place to sit. They said this to each other countless times, but finally, having run out of options, they turned into a small alley and found a place to sit on the threshold of someone's house.
"Let me tell you, I shouldn't have agreed to spend New Year's Eve with you. Look at how crowded this place is! You want to watch fireworks? I think the fireworks are more likely to be watching us. If you bring me here to suffer like this again, I'll see if I even talk to you anymore."
"I was so inexperienced this time. Next year I'll have to book a place to rest in advance. I can't just keep walking like this. It's almost like the marching and crossing mountains back in the day."
The crowds were bustling and noisy, and all I could see were heads; it wasn't a pleasant feeling. Only this dead-end alleyway was deserted, offering a temporary refuge.
After catching her breath, Shen Wanqing quickly touched her earlobes and neck to make sure that the gifts she had just received that evening were still there. Only then did she lose her strength and refuse to leave no matter what.
"The fireworks show will start in one hour."
"Wait, wait, there will be even more people later. I really don't dare to go out."
Shen Wanqing was truly at her wit's end. By now, the two of them had already walked quite a distance from the shopping mall where they were having dinner. After the fireworks show and the New Year's Eve celebrations were over, even more people would be heading back from this riverside.
If you want to leave your car still parked in the mall and take a taxi home, it will be difficult. You will have to walk back to the mall parking lot to find your car before you can go home.
Yu Lang hadn't considered this possibility, and Shen Wanqing's words stunned him. They'd been together for so many years, and sometimes when Shen Wanqing deliberately teased him, he'd complained that his wife treated him like a fool. Now, well, now they were both acting like fools.
Standing in the alley, looking at the sea of people outside, Yu Lang looked up and turned around twice, then suddenly realized something. Why did he have to go to the riverbank to watch the fireworks? There was no way he could squeeze in now.
He turned around and pulled Shen Wanqing up from the steps of someone else's house. They rushed out of the alley and headed for the nearest hotel. When they arrived, he borrowed some money from Shen Wanqing and asked the receptionist for the most expensive suite with a view of the fireworks show.
The standard rooms with a view of the fireworks show along the river were already fully booked, and only the two most expensive rooms were left.
Two rooms on the same floor with different river views. Yu Lang opened the WeChat balance that Shen Wanqing had just transferred to him and generously booked the most expensive room with the best view.
Once they were in the room, they collapsed onto the bed, too exhausted to even move a finger. Only then did Yu Lang show Shen Wanqing his remaining eight yuan and six jiao. He was just a little short of being able to afford such extravagance.
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