Jia Jia lay on the floor at the head of the bed, listening to the whispers under the quilt with drooping eyelids.
Ye Kai was still being held, and judging from Chen Youhan's breath, he was most likely awake. He said calmly, as if his body had cooled and his ashes had been scattered, "Brother Youhan, did you hear the door close?"
Chen Youhan hummed with a thick nasal tone, without opening his eyes, and kissed Ye Kai on the forehead.
Ye Kai's heart was numb, and he said indifferently: "That was the sound of grandma closing the door when she just left here."
Then, as he wished, he felt Chen Youhan's body stiffen. When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse, but his tone was instantly clear: "Grandma was here?"
"Um."
Chen Youhan finally opened his eyes and found Ye Kai's clear and calm gaze. He paused and asked, "Did she see it?"
Ye Kai sneered: "I wouldn't have seen it if you hadn't just wanted to hug me on a whim."
Chen Youhan hugged him and let out a long sigh, then touched his cell phone and took a look. It was a little after nine in the morning.
"Do I still have a chance to explain?"
Ye Kai recalled the anger level that almost broke the door just now, and said objectively: "Probably not."
Chen Youhan: “…”
After a silence of about ten seconds, Ye Kai asked tentatively, "Brother Youhan?" He thought Chen Youhan was nervously thinking of a solution, but he heard him chuckle nonchalantly, as if mocking himself, and then he felt his dry and warm palm gently caressing his back. He couldn't help but feel numb for a moment, and asked in a low voice, "...What are you doing!"
Chen Youhan took his hand and felt his readiness, and said slowly: "I don't like being wronged."
Ye Kai: “?”
The skilled technique made him blush and his heart beat faster. He panted softly and heard Chen Youhan say in his ear: "...Instead of being wrongly accused, it is better to confirm it first."
Not knowing where he was touched, Ye Kai was suddenly stimulated to the point that his pupils were dilated, his waist and voice softened. The pure white linen sheets were lifted over his head, and the latex mattress was shaking as it rolled in the waves. Jia Jia excitedly "woofed" and jumped onto the head of the bed, and then heard a voice of "...Fuck!"
The quilt was lifted, revealing Chen Youhan's naked upper body. His curves were sexy and undulating with his panting, but his eyes were clearly telling a different story - Jia Jia whimpered, and her black eyes, which had just been full of joy, immediately wilted and dared not look at him. She retracted her claws and backed away again and again. Chen Youhan pointed at it warningly, "Get down!"
The deep and magnetic voice sounded scary, but Jia Jia was flexible and just lay down on the ground again with her mouth closed and her head lowered.
The dark eyes did not stop observing.
Ye Kai was tormented and cried, and then Chen Youhan covered his mouth. His voice was broken, which made the dog feel distressed.
The mattress shook terribly, and someone could be heard clearly talking in the garden downstairs. Then he saw the person and the quilt rolling to the floor. The bed sheet was tangled around his waist, and the spring scenery could not be covered. Ye Kai looked at the dog with wet eyes and collapsed: "...Jia Jia, Jia Jia is still there... let it go..."
Chen Youhan leaned over to his ear and said, "It's time for the girl to breed now. Why are you panicking? Teach her..."
Jia Jia was finally driven to the other side by the stench. She closed her eyes, drooped her head, and felt that her whole life was dirty.
Half an hour later.
Everything was settled, the charge was confirmed, and probably all the points with Lan Man were deducted. In the bright light, the brown wooden door was opened a crack, Chen Youhan slipped out with a normal look, and was immediately grabbed by Jiajia's trouser legs. Silly Dog thought he was done and wanted to play with him, Ye Kai was lying on the bed with a pillow in his arms, laughing so hard that he couldn't straighten his back, and Chen Youhan pointed at him lovingly and helplessly.
The entire atrium on the second floor was filled with sunlight, and no one could be heard in the room, perhaps everyone was busy with their own things. Chen Youhan breathed a sigh of relief and went up the stairs to the third floor, where Mary was helping him make his bed.
Mary was well-trained and would never ask him where he was going. She simply said hello. Chen Youhan went into the bathroom to take a shower. When he came out, Mary had already left. The bay window was closed, and the wind that came in brought the clean fragrance of flowers from the garden. He changed his clothes, and Mary just called him downstairs to have brunch.
When I went downstairs, I ran into Ye Kai who was also going out. He was wearing a trendy white T-shirt, but there was a band-aid on his neck which looked awkward. Chen Youhan touched it with his fingertips: "What's wrong?"
He still had the nerve to ask. Ye Kai slapped his hand away and replied coldly: "I was scratched by a dog."
Chen Youhan's eyes were dim, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He whispered in my ear with a deep breath, "Grandma will be heartbroken."
When they got to the living room, Qu Zhongli led Jiajia in, and Lan Man was arranging flowers. She just glanced at them, and Ye Kai's nonchalant look immediately collapsed. Jiajia came to act coquettishly, and he took the dog leash and ran away, leaving Qu Zhongli stretching his neck and shouting behind him: "Hey - I just sneaked back! Let it rest!"
Chen Youhan couldn't help laughing, and picked up a long-stemmed lavender rose from the flower basket and handed it to Lan Man. Lan Man glanced at him, took it silently, cut it diagonally in the middle, and put it in the glass bottle.
Chen Youhan then sat down on the armrest of the sofa with his hands in his pockets, watching Lan Man arranging flowers. After a while, he chatted gently and naturally, "When I returned from Vancouver a few years ago, the thing I missed most was this garden. Last night, when I was on the balcony making a phone call, I felt that the breeze blowing over was fragrant."
Qu Zhongli laughed and said, "There are hundreds of flowers in a garden, but you think they are fragrant, but I can no longer smell them!"
Lan Man snorted, and the corners of her mouth curled up, but her tone was still cold: "Don't be so ungrateful after getting an advantage."
Chen Youhan asked, "Is this Dior or Blue Rain? I heard that blue-purple roses tend to fall apart easily."
There are more than hundreds of varieties of roses. Chen Youhan could ask such a question. Even Qu Zhongli was in awe: "Not bad, you grow flowers too?"
Chen Youhan humbly laughed at himself: "Seeing how beautiful my grandmother's garden is, I also bought some roses before, but none of them lasted more than a month. Growing roses is a science, but unfortunately I don't have the time or patience, I'm far worse than my grandmother."
Lan Man finally said, "Rose is delicate. If you treat it well, it will be beautiful. If you take it home and neglect it, it will be a waste. It's better not to keep it!"
As long as she is willing to take over.
Chen Youhan laughed and said "yes" repeatedly, playing a riddle with her, being careless but making people feel that he was natural and sincere. When Ye Kai came back after hiding enough, he found that they had talked about what kind of flower wall to put in the courtyard of the newly bought villa and how to tell whether a gardener is qualified during an interview. The topic went from the living room to the dining room. Ye Kai pulled out a chair and felt that his family status had dropped to the lowest level in history - what happened? In the blink of an eye, they didn't even wait for him to eat!
A continental breakfast was prepared. Mary brought Ye Kai's portion. Lan Man glanced at him and asked, "Baby, what's wrong with your neck?"
Ye Kai choked and said, "Jia, Jia Jia scratched me."
Lanman hummed, and said innocently—but not anxiously at all: "Then you have to get vaccinated."
Chen Youhan was drinking orange juice, but he choked. He wiped his mouth with a napkin, trying to cover it up, and heard Ye Kai say in a weak voice: "Mosquito..."
Damn it.
The old lady who had just been coaxed into happiness suddenly became cold as ice again. Lan Man cut the fried egg elegantly, raised her eyelids, and said slowly: "There won't be a next time."
At that moment Chen Youhan finally realized that Qu Jia was her biological child.
After brunch, Qu Zhongli went to the company. He and Lanman jointly run an independent designer brand, mainly engaged in high-end ready-to-wear and haute couture. Lanman occasionally went to fashion week a few years ago, but in the past two years, she has completely secluded herself from the world. Her most proud student Vanessa took over as the design director, and Qu Zhongli still controlled the authority of brand management.
"I'm getting older and addicted to laziness. I spend less and less time at the company." Qu Zhongli turned the steering wheel and drove out of the garage. He smiled and continued, "After Vanessa's observation period this year, she will be officially promoted to the head manager. In the future, you and Xiaojin will just be shareholders and count money."
Ye Kai coaxed, “Let my sister find a celebrity from the Chinese entertainment industry to promote the product.”
Qu Zhongli laughed: "Good idea!"
In fact, MxM has never lacked opportunities to be exposed in the European and American fame and fortune circles, but he and Lanman have limited energy and really have no strength to explore the Chinese market.
Qu Zhongli's plan is to wait until they are a hundred years old, and then hand over the brand to the siblings to control, and the actual operation and design will be handed over to professionals in the fashion circle. Or - there are indeed internationally renowned luxury groups that are interested in acquiring it, but Lan Man is reluctant to sell it. If she insists on selling it, then it's better to wait until she kicks her legs and closes her eyes, so that she can have peace and quiet, and avoid being upset.
"When you meet Vanessa later, have a good chat with her."
Ye Kai heard that Qu Zhongli meant it seriously, so he put away his joking expression, but still asked: "What does grandma want to see Brother Youhan for?"
Qu Zhongli smiled and said, "In short, it's not about giving him 200 million to make him leave you."
Chen Youhan followed behind Lan Man. Lan Man had difficulty walking up the stairs, so he stepped forward to support her. When they reached the second floor, Lan Man patted the back of his hand and led him to the room at the end of the corridor.
As soon as the door opened, Chen Youhan realized that this was her workshop.
Lanman put on her glasses. Her reading glasses were gold-rimmed, which matched her silver-white but smooth shoulder-length retro curly hair. Other old ladies would like to have their hair permed three times a month, but she took the initiative to dye her hair silver. With her tall and thin figure, she felt like she could walk on the catwalk. But the older she gets, the shorter she gets. She was so sad that she hadn't measured her height for a long time.
She casually took a white soft measuring tape from the shelf and said, "Stand still."
Shoulder width, arm span, wrist opening, neck circumference, chest circumference, mid-waist, crotch, waist, hips, legs... She measured everything in detail, patiently, meticulously, and neatly. When approaching, Chen Youhan could smell the elegant perfume on her wrist, the aftertaste of green apples after rain, very girly.
Chen Youhan was familiar with this procedure. He suppressed his surprise and asked calmly, "Grandma, do you want to..."
Lan Man hung the measuring tape around her neck, glanced at him, lowered her head and wrote down the data on paper with a pencil, and replied, "I haven't done couture for a long time. I don't feel comfortable leaving your wedding dress to someone else."
Chen Youhan was stunned, his heart was hit by a huge tremor, and he didn't even have time to say anything polite.
He didn't expect that Lanman would personally make wedding suits for them, starting from measuring their sizes, drawing the designs, selecting materials, cutting, and sewing them... Even if it was just a men's tuxedo, a high-end custom-made suit would be extremely time-consuming.
No, what was more shocking was that he heard the word "marriage" from the elders of the Ye family. The red envelope with the word "囍" printed on it, the love hearts between their names, and the way they lived together like family members... Chen Youhan was not unaware of it, but he did not dare to hope for it, and even did not dare to ask.
"I've thought about it a long time ago." Lan Man said calmly, "I made an agreement with Xiao Kai before that when he meets someone he wants to spend his life with in the future, he must bring him back to me first. Look, did you come directly to Vancouver from Yunnan? He still remembers it. If he doesn't bring you to see me first, I will be angry." She frowned half-seriously, and then smiled. This smile was like a spring breeze, with an innocent and gentle glow.
Chen Youhan's eyes inexplicably warmed up when he saw her smile.
He really didn't think he could get the support of Ye Kai's family - at least not so soon. But Lan Man not only accepted him, but also prepared to personally customize a wedding dress for him. Roses suddenly bloomed in the desert smoke in front of him. The thorns were still there, but it seemed that if they walked through it hand in hand, it would no longer be so painful.
"Luckily it's you, otherwise you would have brought back a girl - for God's sake!" Lan Man pushed his reading glasses up his forehead and continued to mutter, "I have to make a high-end wedding dress for her myself!"
Chen Youhan came back to his senses, lowered his head and laughed, listening to Lan Man scolding: "Just nailing beads is going to tire me to death!"
She took Chen Youhan's hand and led him to push open the partition of the studio. The air conditioning was lower, the lighting was gorgeous, the long-haired carpet was spotless, and the four mirrors reflected a black mannequin in the middle, with the tail of the white wedding dress flowing like petals.
"Look, this is what I prepared for Xiao Jin," Lan Man said, feeling sad again. "This kid is too stubborn. She's turning 40 and still won't get married. I think she's in big trouble."
"It's better to be single than to be with someone who doesn't have the right one. She's not the kind of person who would settle for anything less." Chen Youhan comforted him.
"In a family like ours, it's harder for girls to get married than boys. How many marriages exist in name only? She is indeed a person who won't compromise. She always worries that people worse off than her are after money, but how can people better than her be willing to be inferior to her? She stayed at my place for a few days last month and said she didn't plan to get married and would go abroad to buy sperm to have a baby directly - she likes children, you see how well she took care of Xiao Kai in the past."
Lan Man held Chen Youhan's hand and kept chattering, her eyes fixed on the wedding dress. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes furrowed and then relaxed. Her gaze was nostalgic and melancholy, with a sense of relieved regret.
Chen Youhan gently held her in his arms and stroked her beautifully groomed silver hair: "That's great, you can prepare baby clothes for her."
Lan Man was amused by him. She sighed deeply, raised her hand to close the electric sliding door, and said with a smile: "Luckily you really love him, otherwise we would never trust Xiao Kai to you."
"He will only be better than me in the future. If he ever lets me down," Chen Youhan paused and joked, "I will come to you and grandpa to seek justice."
"He let you down?" Lan Man rolled her eyes elegantly. "He was with me two years ago and he almost lost his soul! I accompanied him to drink tea, plant flowers, take walks and walk the dog every day. How could he act like a spoiled child with us in the past? Not anymore. Youhan, I stood in front of the window of the living room on the first floor and watched him. He sat in the garden with a blanket wrapped around him. The evening sun shone on him. No one was more lonely than him. He once said to me, Grandma, I want your most beautiful tea set. I made him tea, and after a few sips, tears just flowed down his cheeks."
As she spoke, she began to wipe away her tears, then took a deep breath and said, "Forget it, it's all in the past. I'm happier than anyone else that you two can be together again. Youhan, Xiaokai is a child who grew up in love. He has never been hurt, so he has the ability to move forward for love. You—" Lan Man took his hand, shook it tightly, looked him in the eye and asked solemnly, "Can you protect his ability?"
Chen Youhan was slightly startled, staring at her, curled his lips, and whispered: "Grandma, how can I bear to disappoint him again?"
Lan Man slowly covered her chest with her hands, her eyes filled with relief. "This is fate. Before, there was a guy named Lucas who pursued him. He lived in this neighborhood and even gave up his job for him! I couldn't stand it, but Xiao Kai wouldn't give in. Fortunately, he didn't give in, otherwise -"
Chen Youhan tightened his grip, and Lan Man came back to her senses. "What's wrong?" After she came to her senses, she smiled and said, "Jealous? Didn't Xiaokai mention it to you? Then just pretend you don't know, otherwise he will come to settle the score with me."
Chen Youhan lowered his head and looked at her playfully: "He didn't pursue success?"
Lan Man didn't understand: "Yeah, I'm afraid to see his mother when I walk the dog!"
Chen Youhan couldn't help laughing and confirmed again: "We have never been together."
“We’ve never been together, how come—” Lan Man narrowed his eyes and said in a serious tone: “Youhan, you are not such a low-level person, are you?”
"No, no, you misunderstood." Chen Youhan couldn't help but raise one corner of his mouth, coughed softly and said, "I've met Lucas, he's not bad--"
"But certainly not as good as me."
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