Chapter 55, Brother
Jiang Jiaoming raised his hand and placed it on Liang Kongxiang's hand that was stroking his face. He looked at her deeply, remained silent for a moment, then got out of the car, walked around to the passenger side, opened the car door, and led Liang Kongxiang out of the car towards Jiang Dongshi's direction.
The Samoyed beside Jiang Dongshi, wearing a collar, was excitedly spinning around. Hearing the car door close, it tried to rush towards Jiang Jiaoming, but Jiang Dongshi pulled it back. "Come back."
"Dad." Jiang Jiaoming walked over, put his arm around Liang Kongxiang's shoulder, and introduced her: "This is Liang Kongxiang."
“Uncle Jiang.” Liang Kongxiang took off his baseball cap and smiled gently.
"Woof! Woof woof!" The Samoyed stuck out its tongue.
Jiang Dongshi stroked the dog while looking up at Liang Kongxiang, nodded to her, and said, "Come in and sit down." He sat up, took the dog's leash, and led them inside.
The golden light of dawn was serene, casting a long, slanted quadrilateral of sunlight beneath the tall gate. Liang Kongxiang, holding Jiang Jiaoming's hand, followed Jiang Dongshi inside. The three shadows overlapped, and they quickly passed through the spacious sunlight and arrived at the living room.
The room was filled with incense, giving it a faint, pleasant fragrance. There was some noise coming from the kitchen; two women were making breakfast, the clinking of knives on the cutting board. Aside from that, the building was almost silent. She glanced sideways at Jiang Jiaoming.
He followed her gaze to the kitchen, then looked at her, raised his eyebrows, and whispered, "I'm so scared, please protect me."
It's very much in a teasing tone.
Liang Kongxiang pretended not to hear and calmly surveyed the somewhat quiet house. The ceiling was high, and there were many small Chinese-style windows on all sides. Sunlight shone through the raised transparent patterns, casting rays of light on the floor in colorful patterns.
Jiang Jiaoming leaned closer and called out in a high-pitched voice, "Wife, I'm so scared."
He started again. Once Jiang Jiaoming had a piece of evidence that Liang Kongxiang loved him, he used words as a magnifying glass, focusing on that one spot and refusing to move on.
"When are you going to give the cake to your dad?" Liang Kongxiang ignored him and changed the subject.
“Give it to me now,” he said, pulling Liang Kongxiang to sit down on the other side of the small sofa, separated from Jiang Dongshi by a coffee table. Jiang Jiaoming took the cake box from Liang Kongxiang, placed it on the coffee table, and pushed it over. “Dad, this is a cake that Kongxiang made for you.”
“Leave it there,” Jiang Dongshi replied curtly. He wasn’t as fierce as Liang Kongxiang had imagined. On the contrary, he looked just like the photos published in the media—a very charming man with almond-shaped eyes, thick eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and a dignified air. He didn’t talk much and always had a faint sense of aloofness about him. He didn’t seem to have any intention of chatting with her either. “Jiaoming, take Kongxiang to sit in the garden.”
“Okay.” Jiang Jiaoming was more than happy to oblige. He had nothing to say to his father, and he didn’t want Liang Kongxiang to feel uncomfortable here. “Let’s go.” He stood up and reached out his hand to her.
Liang Kongxiang took his hand, stood up, and smiled at Jiang Dongshi, saying, "Uncle, I'll go for a stroll in the garden with Jiaoming first." She pointed to the cake on the table, "You can try it first; it won't taste good if it's left out for too long."
Jiang Dongshi nodded, indicating that she had heard him.
Liang Kongxiang had just left, and hadn't even gone out yet, when someone suddenly called out to her, "Wait." She turned around.
It was Jiang Dongshi. He loosened the leash from his wrist and patted the Samoyed's head. "Go on."
The Samoyed, tongue lolling out, darted towards Jiang Jiaoming and circled around his legs. Jiang Jiaoming clicked his tongue, then, while holding Liang Kongxiang's leash, bent down slightly to hug the dog, looking down with disdain and saying, "My dad really is determined to make my life miserable. You've ruined our time together again."
"Isn't our time together enough?" Liang Kongxiang had taken a liking to the puppy early in the morning, but because it was Jiang Dongshi's, she hadn't looked at it much. Now that it was in Jiang Jiaoming's hands, she didn't hesitate to reach out and stroke its head. The Samoyed immediately nuzzled its head into Liang Kongxiang's palm. Liang Kongxiang felt itchy from being nudged, so she stepped back and looked up at Jiang Jiaoming with a smile, praising it, "So well-behaved."
Jiang Jiaoming already disliked the dog, and when he heard Liang Kongxiang praise it, he scoffed and put the dog down, not even bothering to hold the leash. "When you pet me, I let you pet me, so why don't you ever praise me for being well-behaved?"
"Can you even compare these?" The puppy scurried up to Liang Kongxiang's feet and trotted along her legs. She looked down at her feet to avoid accidentally stepping on it. "I will kiss you, not the dog."
That's true. Jiang Jiaoming felt much better after hearing that. He then pulled the dog leash to his wrist, annoyed by the lecherous dog: "Don't get too close to my wife."
He shortened the leash considerably, limiting the dog's movement; it could barely move and had to stay obediently at his feet. Jiang Jiaoming led the silly dog by the leash with one hand and put his other arm around Liang Kongxiang's shoulder, leading her through two rows of tall trees toward the flower area.
Not far away stood a giant willow tree, its branches swaying in the wind, the tips of its leaves brushing against the small glass house beneath it. Jiang Jiaoming opened the door and led her inside.
"Sit here for a while." He tied the dog to the doorknob, preventing it from coming in, and then closed the door.
"Why are you making me sit here again?" Liang Kongxiang pushed away his hands that were pressing on her shoulders, turned around and said helplessly, "I want to go for a walk." She saw that it was very beautiful outside, with many kinds of flowers, and further away there seemed to be a fruit tree area, so she asked him, "Can we pick the fruit?"
“There are too many insects,” Jiang Jiaoming said, unwilling to take her to suck mosquitoes. “If you see anything you want to eat, I’ll have someone pick it for you.”
"No." Liang Kongxiang took Jiang Jiaoming's hand, pushed open the glass door, and the sunlight rushed in. She took her hat back from Jiang Jiaoming and put it on. "Come with me." She also freed the dog that Jiang Jiaoming was tethering, and led the two of them up the small slope.
Upon closer inspection, it became clear that the area was planted with many fruit trees. Five or six women were watering and weeding the trees, picking peaches with large baskets in their hands. They paused for a moment when they saw Liang Kongxiang and Jiang Jiaoming approaching.
Liang Kongxiang smiled at them, walked over and poked the basket, which was piled with several pink and juicy peaches. "They look so fresh."
“Yes. Miss Liang, please have a seat.” She pointed to the bench inside. “There are a lot of mosquitoes here.”
“Look,” Jiang Jiaoming shrugged, “this time it wasn’t me who shouted it.”
"Are you secretly happy again?"
"I'm so sorry for you, baby," Jiang Jiaoming said, feigning concern.
Liang Kongxiang knew that staying here would delay their work, so she simply picked out two peaches, sat on the bench, put the dog between her legs, and fed it the peaches.
Golden sunlight dappled her through the gaps in the green forest. She mischievously held a large peach above the Samoyed's head, luring it to jump around foolishly trying to grab the unattainable peach. Liang Kongxiang was amused by it, her eyes crinkling with laughter.
She rarely had such a carefree moment, and Jiang Jiaoming pointed his camera at her.
She rested her chin on one hand, propped up on her crossed thighs, still smiling, her eyes crinkling, constantly raising her hand to tease the Samoyed: "So silly, jump a little higher... Don't rush, good dog."
Liang Kongxiang occasionally let out a laugh, mixed with the whistling and barking of dogs. A gentle breeze, carrying the sweet scent of fruit, wafted from the treetops, causing her hair to flutter slightly, and her pearl earrings to gleam in the sunlight.
Jiang Jiaoming found an angle and pointed the camera at her.
He's a good photographer; he used to love taking pictures of Liang Kongxiang back in college, and it was a real treat for him.
In the video, the silly dog finally caught a peach, crunched it up, its mouth full of juice, and rubbed against Liang Kongxiang's legs. She helplessly pushed the dog away, pressing her hands against its face.
"Come here quickly," Liang Kongxiang couldn't resist the Samoyed's attack, so she quickly brought up Jiang Jiaoming and beckoned to him with her finger. The smile on her face hadn't faded yet. "What are you doing standing there? Didn't you say there were a lot of mosquitoes?" Then she realized that he was holding up a camera, probably taking pictures of her. "Stop taking pictures. Your rival is more clingy than you."
Jiang Jiaoming's outfit today is very strange. He's wearing a hat, a gray trendy sweatshirt, a mirrorless camera hanging around his neck, and gray shorts with his calves exposed. If he stands there any longer, mosquitoes will definitely bite him.
"What kind of love rival is this?" Jiang Jiaoming turned off his camera and walked over in a few steps.
The silly dog was still trying to put the leash in Liang Kongxiang's hands, but Liang Kongxiang had already put her hands behind her back and refused to take the leash from its mouth. She comforted it, saying, "Brother is here, go find your brother."
Jiang Jiaoming paused in his action of tying the dog, turned his head, and narrowed his eyes. "What did you call me?"
"Hmm?" Liang Kongxiang looked at him with slight confusion: "According to seniority, shouldn't he be your younger brother?"
“Hmm,” Jiang Jiaoming pulled the dog leash over and sat down next to Liang Kongxiang, then picked up the dog and sat down beside him, turning his head to ask, “So what should it call me?”
"Jiang Jiaoming, your move is terrible," Liang Kongxiang laughed at him.
"Oh, so you did that on purpose? Liang Kongxiang, I didn't know you had this kind of fetish." Jiang Jiaoming turned the tables, his tone reluctant. "Fine, I'll be your brother today, how about you call me that a couple more times?"
"What kind of brother and sister kiss, hold hands, and hug? Brother Jiaoming, your taste is too heavy."
"Baby, why are you being so sweet-talking today? Hmm?" He felt a tingling, itchy feeling in his heart when he heard her call him "brother." He leaned over and kissed her cheek, looking at her.
“Hmm, you can give the credit to your rival, it’s so cute.” Liang Kongxiang saw him sitting obediently next to Jiang Jiaoming’s legs and started teasing it again. She poked its forehead with her finger, laughed and called it stupid, and then asked, “Your dad doesn’t seem like the kind of person who can raise such a silly dog. I thought he would raise a fierce wolfhound.”
“My mom used to raise this dog,” Jiang Jiaoming explained. “This dog was originally born from the dog my mom used to raise. That dog passed away a couple of years ago, leaving behind a silly dog.” He pinched the dog’s face.
This surprised Liang Kongxiang somewhat. She had initially thought that someone like Jiang Dongshi might not be very good to his wife. But then she suddenly wondered, Jiang Dongshi wasn't incapable of showing patience and love, so why was he so stingy with Jiang Jiaoming, giving him such a harsh environment for emotional growth? Perhaps he had overlooked the fact that when he showed love to the dog, it created an even greater sense of disappointment for Jiang Jiaoming.
She had no father and didn't need the role of a father, so she had an even worse impression of Jiang Dongshi. She sighed and pinched Jiang Jiaoming's ear.
Jiang Jiaoming knew what she was thinking. "I don't care anymore."
“Whether you care or not, you can’t erase the hurt he caused you,” Liang Kongxiang opened her arms, “Let me hug you… I wish I had met you sooner.” The hug lasted for a long time.
With Liang Kongxiang's arms wrapped around his neck, Jiang Jiaoming suddenly felt himself shrinking.
The year his mother died, he was ten years old. He stood in the cold rain of March, surrounded by men and women dressed in black suits and long black skirts. They held bouquets of white flowers, their faces filled with sorrow, looking at him with pity. They came and went in a hurry, leaving him alone to wander among the tall adults, listening to their grief.
Jiang Dongshi became very indifferent to him from then on, shifting his focus to the company. Although he left Jiang Jiaoming to his own devices, he had high expectations for the results of each step of his growth and never gave positive feedback. Even if Jiang Jiaoming did a perfect job, Jiang Dongshi would only make sarcastic remarks.
As he grew older, Jiang Dongshi became more taciturn. He seemed to know his son had grown up and rarely scolded or belittled him anymore. However, Jiang Jiaoming had long since developed a heart that could withstand indifference and no longer harbored any illusions about Jiang Dongshi, family, or love. If he hadn't brought up the matter again with Liang Kongxiang today, Jiang Jiaoming would have thought he had already forgotten about it.
The feeling of being held by Liang Kongxiang was magical. She was like a gentle breeze, lightly sweeping away the raindrops that stung his body. Over the years, the dampness that had permeated his body and mind was now gradually drying out.
On the bench, Liang Kongxiang and Jiang Jiaoming embraced each other face to face. She rested her chin on his shoulder, and their eyes met those of the Samoyed, which was still grinning with its teeth showing. Liang Kongxiang rubbed its head and said with a smile, "Lucky little dog, you've taken away so much of your brother's love."
The dog didn't understand, barked twice, jumped off the chair and tried to run away. Jiang Jiaoming helplessly tightened the leash and pulled it back. "Do you even know where you're going?"
“Let’s go, it’s not good to stay here any longer,” Liang Kongxiang said.
Jiang Jiaoming hummed in agreement and led her back. Just then, his phone rang. He saw it was Jiang Dongshi and answered it.
"Come on over, your Uncle He will be here soon." Then he hung up.
"So fast?" Liang Kongxiang glanced at her watch. "It's only 9:30."
"Okay, I'll have someone take the gift box out of the trunk in a bit and give it to him before the meal."
"good."
They had just reached the living room when they heard the sound of a car outside. Jiang Jiaoming turned around, and He Ciqian got out of the car and waved, "Hey, Jiaoming."
He strode over, and Jiang Jiaoming released Liang Kongxiang to shake his hand. "Uncle He, so early."
“It’s 9:30, it’s getting late,” he said after greeting Jiang Jiaoming, then pointed to Liang Kongxiang, “This must be Kongxiang, long time no see.” He shook hands with Liang Kongxiang and said with a smile, “I’ve seen the trailer for your movie, it’s going to be a smash hit next year.”
"If that's what Uncle He says, then I'm really looking forward to it."
He Ciqian chuckled twice and asked Jiang Jiaoming, "Where's your dad?"
"Come in." Jiang Jiaoming led him inside and called out to Aunt Zhao in the kitchen. A woman carrying fruit came out with a "hey." Jiang Jiaoming pointed to the cut fruit on the table and said, "Freshly picked, have a taste."
“It looks good,” He Ciqian said after taking a bite. He then waved behind Jiang Jiaoming and stood up. “You invited me to your home, and you, the host, are so late. Dongshi, it wouldn’t be right if we didn’t have a couple of drinks at the table later, would it?”
“Drink,” Jiang Dongshi patted Jiang Jiaoming on the shoulder, “You and Kong Xiang go to the wine cellar and pick out a couple of bottles of wine. Have a good drink with your Uncle He later.”
Liang Kongxiang realized this was an opportunity to get closer to He Ciqian, so she went to the wine cellar with Jiang Jiaoming. During this break, Jiang Jiaoming made a phone call to have someone fetch some things from the garage.
When the two turned back, Jiang Dongshi and He Ciqian were talking about the film festival.
“I’ve also seen Tian Lei’s film. It has many highlights, but there are too many characters. We’ll see if the Berlin audience will accept this type of film. There are few examples of this kind of ensemble film winning awards in previous years. It has to be exceptionally outstanding to have a chance. Besides, this year there are directors who are even better at portraying social realities through ensemble films than Tian Lei and are also planning to participate in Berlin. I think his chances are slim.” He Ciqian saw Jiang Jiaoming and Liang Kongxiang return, asked them to sit down, and continued talking about this matter.
"When Liu Xinyang was arrested?" Jiang Dongshi suddenly asked.
"Don't expose her secrets, Uncle He," Jiang Jiaoming chuckled. "She's jealous. If you bring this up, I'll probably jump into the Yellow River."
He started making things up again, and Liang Kongxiang glanced at him helplessly, but didn't want to interrupt him.
“Wow, you and your dad are just like two peas in a pod, both henpecked.” He Ciqian and Jiang Dongshi were college classmates. He recalled, “But usually it was your dad who controlled your mom more, not allowing this or that. Ugh, just thinking about it now makes my teeth ache.”
"You two met while filming 'Brilliant Past'?" Jiang Dongshi took a sip of water, looked at Liang Kongxiang, and suddenly asked, "Did you know each other before?"
Liang Kongxiang laughed and said, "I've seen him before at the awards ceremony."
Jiang Dongshi was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Before the awards ceremony, to be precise,"
"Before you made your first movie."
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Author's note: Still giving out red envelopes!
Five thousand words, isn't it sweet?! Anyone want to praise me? [crying emoji] [crying emoji] [crying emoji]
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