Chapter 28 Why Explain
She put away her cell phone, turned off her computer, turned off the lights, walked out of the office and towards the elevator.
While waiting for the elevator, Qi Jin sent a message with the address for dinner: [Your CEO Zhou has lost contact, so you may need to take a taxi.]
Yan Nian felt confused and put away her phone without planning to reply. Zhou Ran came out of the office area and stood next to her.
There were few people taking the elevator at this time, and it quickly reached the basement floor.
Yan Nian followed him to the parking space in silence.
Zhou Ran sat in the driver's seat and started the car.
Yan Nian hesitated for a while, then opened the passenger door and sat in.
The powerful herbal scent stimulates brain memory.
That night, she sat in this position, covered in wind and rain. Zhou Ran helped her put on her clothes, wiped her hair, and then sent her home.
The small carriage was like a world without hustle and bustle, with only him and her.
Yan Nian suddenly felt a little sleepy. He fastened his seat belt, leaned his head against the window sill, and waited for departure.
Zhou Ran saw that she seemed very tired and asked, "What's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?"
Yan Nian straightened her head and turned her head, accidentally meeting his bright gaze.
The man put his left hand on the steering wheel and faced her sideways.
Occasionally, a car would pass by with its headlights on, and in the light, his facial features were very clear, sharper than when he was young, and his temperament was even more pronounced.
Yan Nian looked at him fascinatedly for a while, then looked away and shook his head absentmindedly: "It's okay."
The car slid out, and Yan Nian asked, "It's Qi Jin's birthday, are you giving him a gift?"
She wanted to ask if it would be inappropriate to go like this, after all, her social circle was limited.
Zhou Ran seemed to have heard a joke: "What kind of year is it still giving gifts? He's not a child celebrating his 80th birthday."
After hearing this, Yan Nian thought about it and agreed.
It was a rare harmonious moment with Zhou Ran, so Yan Nian resisted the urge to ask when his grandmother and that woman left.
This is not her concern.
After arriving at the destination, they waited for Zhou Ran to park the car and then went in side by side.
The place where Qi Jin invited us to dinner was a stylish theme restaurant, and as soon as you entered the door you felt like you were in a star-rated hotel.
Each private room has a different style.
She walked slowly and soon followed Zhou Ran, who led her to the door of Qi Jinding's private room.
It was quite lively inside, and bursts of jokes drifted into my ears.
Zhou Ran pushed the door open and went in. The large private room was full of people; both men and women, all well-dressed and of similar age. It was more like a class reunion, with everyone competing for attention.
Everyone looked at them. Qi Jin had been drunk up to his neck, his face red. Seeing the two of them, he quickly pulled away and came forward: "You're finally here. If you don't come soon, we'll have to move on. Come on, sit down."
Yan Nian raised the corners of her lips and said to Qi Jin, "Happy birthday, Boss Qi."
"Okay," Qi Jin greeted her, "Hurry up and sit down. The food is getting cold. Let's see what you want to eat. Feel free to order!"
After saying that, he called the waiter from the door and went to deal with other people drinking.
They all seemed to be friends and old classmates of Zhou Ran and Qi Jin, greeting each other: "Mr. Zhou, long time no see!"
"Mr. Zhou, it's so hard to see you," a woman said. "You never reply to my messages, and you never join my group chats. Ever since I went to college, I thought you disappeared!"
"That's right. Ever since graduation, I haven't come to the class reunion."
There was just enough space for two of them in one circle.
Everyone's eyes were focused on the silent and unfamiliar Yan Nian, thinking she was brought by Zhou Ran. Someone joked, "Mr. Zhou, why don't you introduce your girlfriend?"
“That’s right!”
Zhou Ran asked her to sit down first, then he pulled out a chair and sat down, as if he didn't hear anything and looked isolated from the world.
The table was overflowing with food, and Yan Nian said to the waiter behind her, "No need for more, thank you!"
The waiter nodded and stepped out.
Yan Nian didn't know anyone except Qi Jin and Zhou Ran. Since he didn't react, why bother explaining a question that he was too lazy to even deal with? He wouldn't see these people again in the future, so he silently picked up his chopsticks and started picking up the food.
Qi Jin interrupted and pointed at the man: "Stop talking nonsense and drink the wine in your hand, quickly!"
The atmosphere was awkward for a moment, then became heated because of the large number of people.
Having not eaten for a day, Yan Nian first ate a few bites of light seasonal vegetables to fill his stomach.
The two were the last to arrive. By the time Yan Nian finished eating and put down his chopsticks, many people had already gone outside to get some fresh air and smoke, leaving only a few people in the private room.
They were all women, sitting in their seats putting on makeup and chatting with Zhou Ran non-stop.
It seemed like saying one more word would cost money. He would just say "hmm" without raising his eyelids and never pick up his chopsticks. When someone asked him to go out, he refused on the grounds that he didn't smoke.
Yan Nian got up to wash his hands. The bathroom in the private room smelled strongly of cigarette smoke. Seeing that Zhou Ran looked like he didn't want to talk to anyone, he gave up saying hello and went out to find a public restroom.
When she came back, she was gone, but her bag was still lying on the chair.
A little lost.
But she soon realized that there was really no need for people to say goodbye to her when they left.
Yan Nian saw that it was already nine o'clock and wanted to leave early, so she picked up her bag and went out to find Qi Jin.
After searching for a while but couldn't find him, I had to send him a message.
Qi Jin replied that he was smoking downstairs, and Yan Nian received the message and went downstairs.
Seeing Zhou Ran and Qi Jin standing by the fountain and chatting about something, he felt a little unhappy.
Yan Nian was afraid of disturbing their conversation, so he stood there and waited.
On the other side, Qi Jin exhaled a puff of cigarette: "Is it that serious? We haven't seen each other for years. Isn't it just asking if Yan Nian is your girlfriend? Just admit it generously. Why not even eat a bite of food and make things so awkward!"
Zhou Ran said slowly: "Do I care whether they are stiff or not?"
Qi Jin was speechless: "Okay, okay, I'm frozen, that's enough!"
"Today I've created a special opportunity for you to be alone with your first love. How about it?"
Zhou Ran: "What's going on?"
Qi Jin couldn't stand him pretending, so he sent a message to Yan Nian at night but didn't reply. Zhou Ran also wanted to play missing, but he actually showed up together.
Qi Jin tutted his words and concluded, "I can see that you are only interested in her unilaterally, but Yan Nian doesn't take you seriously at all."
Zhou Ran let out a long "Oh": "Maybe you're blind. Aren't all the people you invited today eyeing me covetously?"
"Fuck you." Qi Jin felt that he couldn't continue the conversation today, so he wiped his face and sighed.
Soak in it for a few seconds.
Qi Jin suddenly felt a little sympathetic towards him.
At first, he always thought that these two people could go to the end, but he didn't know what went wrong.
When I was in college, we were in different places and had different majors, so we had fewer topics to talk about and naturally had less contact.
During one vacation, I went back to Lindu to contact Zhou Ran, only to find that his phone had been turned off for a long time, and his WeChat was set to be visible for half a year. There was not a single update, as if he had disappeared out of thin air.
It was not until he graduated from college that Zhou Ran suddenly brought his team to his home restaurant for a dinner, and he almost didn't dare to recognize him.
The sunny chatterbox who always likes to wear casual clothes and limited edition sneakers every day, and the lazy young master who sleeps until noon every day, has turned into a hard-working, mature, steady and detached man in the blink of an eye.
As the conversation got deeper, they inevitably brought up some embarrassing things that happened in the past, and he realized that they had not been in touch since their freshman year.
When he casually asked if it was because they were in different places, Zhou Ran replied to his question simply and sadly with the three words "I don't know".
Qi Jin threw the cigarette into the trash can beside him: "Alright, just torture yourself. I'm taking my people to another location. Are you really not going?"
Zhou Ran: "Yeah."
"Then make yourself at your own pace." Qi Jin took two steps and then came back: "Remember to pay the bill when you leave."
Zhou Ran laughed: "You bastard."
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