Chapter 31 Vacation (Bonus Chapter)
Zhan Lintian quickly sent a message: "You've confirmed your relationship so quickly?"
He couldn't help but imagine the scene of Jiang Xia and Wu Zhou's date—perhaps in a private room at a restaurant, just the two of them...
Perhaps when emotions run high, Wu Zhou will kiss Jiang Xia, as romantic as the dream he had last night.
Zhan Lintian frowned, his eyes fixed on the page.
It wasn't until Jiang Xia replied, "President Zhan is joking," that things came to a head.
Zhan Lintian suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out that it hadn't happened yet... thankfully, it hadn't.
Although he had been trying to bring Wu Zhou and Jiang Xia together, he was afraid that he might push Jiang Xia into a new fire pit at the last minute.
He then sent a message: "Did you have dinner together because you needed Wu Zhou's help with something?"
He guessed the reason.
It's very simple. Jiang Xia will not take the initiative to invite Wu Zhou, and if Wu Zhou invites him, he will refuse.
When Wu Zhou invited him, there was a reason why Jiang Xia could not refuse.
For example, Wu Ming's situation...
When Jiang Xia saw Zhan Lintian's message, his eyelids twitched and he felt a pang of discomfort in his heart.
In the past, Wu Ming would press him about his whereabouts, jokingly asking why he hadn't informed him beforehand, and whether he was going to betray him, disregarding their years of friendship.
Each accusation made him seem as if he were guilty of a heinous crime and unforgivable. Only after he apologized would Wu Ming say, "Just kidding, but I accept your apology."
Now, when Jiang Xia sees similar words again, he feels terrified.
Fortunately, the phone rang again.
Zhan Lintian said, "You can ask me for help next time you need it."
At the end, a meme was posted—a little figure proudly pointing to himself with his elbow, accompanied by the caption "Believe in my abilities."
Jiang Xia's heart skipped a beat.
President Zhan... did not question him, nor did he express any blame; instead, he thoughtfully offered him a way out.
Jiang Xia looked at the arrogant emoji, the tension in his eyes gradually dissipated, and he couldn't help but chuckle.
Reply: "Thank you, Mr. Zhan. I'll definitely ask for your help next time."
Jiang Xia put down his phone.
When Zhan Lintian comes to collect the cookies tonight, I'll subtly hint at Ying Hua's intentions.
Let Mr. Zhan decide for himself.
Across from him, Wu Zhou gazed at the gentle smile on Jiang Xia's face.
He picked up his coffee, swallowed it, and thought to himself that Jiang Xia should smile more and let go of the sorrow between his brows and eyes.
"how?"
Jiang Xia put down his phone, feeling relieved, and only then did he belatedly realize how hungry he was.
He looked at Wu Zhou: "Mr. Wu, thank you for your reminder. Since Ying Hua wants to get along with President Zhan through me, I can only be a guide at most. The specifics depend on President Zhan's thoughts. He just sent me a message, and I thought I'd give him a heads-up first."
Wu Zhou nodded: "Yes, that's good, but don't point it out yourself. Just guide him to find out."
Jiang Xia paused, looking into Wu Zhou's eyes: "Guide?"
The man in front of him patiently explained, "Yinghua wants to get Zhan Lintian to invest in a traditional industry that doesn't make much money. For Zhan Lintian, this is bad news."
"Jiang Xia, don't spread bad news, otherwise he will think of you involuntarily when he thinks about bad things in the future."
Jiang Xia pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then said softly, "I've learned something."
He didn't know much about Wu Zhou before, but through spending time with him, he discovered that Wu Zhou was not only insightful about literature, but also had great insights in other areas, and had a set of well-reasoned analytical logic.
Jiang Xia looked at Wu Zhou. If it weren't for him, he might still be troubled by this matter.
He expressed his gratitude: "Thank you, Mr. Wu."
Wu Zhou pushed the food towards him and said in a low voice, "Eat first, don't let the food get cold."
Jiang Xia pursed her lips and gave an embarrassed chuckle in response to the man's kindness.
The restaurant's flavors are on the lighter side, but the ingredients themselves are fresh and sweet. After Jiang Xia finished eating and drinking, he put down his chopsticks and thought to himself: I should eat less tonight.
When I get home, I'll try on the suit I'll wear to the meeting the day after tomorrow. If it doesn't fit, I'll have it adjusted by a tailor tomorrow.
Before leaving, Wu Zhou asked the waiter to pack up a pastry and handed it to him: "Have it for afternoon tea."
Jiang Xia hesitated.
Wu Zhou said softly, "Take it."
Jiang Xia hesitated for a moment, then accepted the gift with both hands: "Thank you...Mr. Wu."
Outside the restaurant, the wind howled, and the temperature dropped somewhat.
Wu Zhou instinctively moved to the left to block most of the wind for him.
At such close range, Jiang Xia could feel Wu Zhou's body temperature; he was so hot that it almost burned him.
The intense heat became even more pronounced as the two of them sat in the back seat together.
Jiang Xia sat to one side, not daring to look at him.
As soon as the car stopped in the company's basement parking lot, Jiang Xia hurriedly got out: "Thank you, Mr. Wu. I'll go upstairs now and won't bother you any longer."
He turned to leave after saying that.
“Jiangxia.” Wu Zhou’s voice was low and hoarse, as if he were speaking in his own ear.
Jiang Xia stopped in his tracks, his heart trembling.
“Jiang Xia,” Wu Zhou said, walking downstairs and standing not far behind Jiang Xia, “Actually, I wasn’t drunk last night.”
Wu Zhou watched Jiang Xia's stiff back without urging him on.
He was willing to wait for Jiang Xia to gradually understand his feelings and to think about their future together, until Jiang Xia willingly nodded in agreement.
"Goodbye," Wu Zhou said first.
Jiang Xia remained in the same spot, turned her head slightly to meet the man's gaze, and whispered, "Goodbye..."
Jiang Xia walked toward the elevator, his backside burning with gazes. It wasn't until the elevator doors closed that he came to his senses, his legs went weak, and he leaned against the wall, his face flushed.
My heart was pounding.
If Wu Zhou had confessed his feelings directly, she could have simply refused. But he just quietly approached her and treated her well without making it clear to her, leaving her with no reason to reject him.
With a balance of offense and defense, if he advances, Wu Zhou will advance as well; if he doesn't advance, he can keep the boundaries between them within the comfortable range of the river gorge.
Jiang Xia thought to himself that it would have been better to have left Mengcheng decisively back then.
As for now, leaving Montreal for something uncertain seems to come at too high a cost.
Ding-dong—the door opens.
Jiang Xia straightened up, composed himself, and strode into the office area.
"Everyone, try the pastries I brought, they seem pretty good."
Wu Zhou packed two portions of pastries for him, one to share with his colleagues and one to keep for himself.
Colleagues gathered around, and one of them exclaimed, "Team Leader Jiang, you went to this Shike restaurant? I remember their plum blossom cakes are limited, and you basically have to pre-order them a day in advance to buy them."
Jiang Xia was about to take a small bite when he heard this and froze: "A day in advance?"
Qiao Ciyou, who was standing next to her, nodded: "Yes, they start selling in the morning and sell out by noon. They don't accept delivery, so if you want to eat there, you have to call ahead to reserve it."
Jiang Xia pursed her lips and looked at the snow-white pastry in her hand.
So... Wu Zhou didn't decide on the restaurant on a whim after receiving the message today.
He had planned to invite me to dinner as early as last night or even earlier... but today, by some strange coincidence, I also had something to ask him.
There is someone who likes you so much.
Jiang Xia felt his whole body burning up, and then he became confused.
Before graduating from university, I had barely met Wu Zhou, let alone had any connection with him.
He had known Wu Ming for so many years, but Wu Ming still hadn't fallen for him.
His friendship with Wu Ming was forged over time, and there are traces to tell the story.
But Wu Zhou and himself... Jiang Xia became more and more confused as he thought about it...
The plum blossom cake at "Shike" isn't expensive, but it's hard to buy lately, which is why it's so rare.
Team Leader Jiang went out for lunch and brought back such hard-to-order pastries; anyone with a discerning eye could tell that this meal was carefully planned.
Some people wondered, didn't the woman want the pastries? Why was it Jiang Xia who brought them back and shared them with everyone?
Everyone looked at Jiang Xia, who was sitting at his workstation with a smile on his face. Team Leader Jiang asked gently, "Why are you all looking at me?"
It doesn't seem like it.
The colleagues planned to wait until the situation became clearer before making any further statements.
In the afternoon, Jiang Xia was engrossed in his work. During this time, Wu Ming sent him many messages, asking if he had taken his annual leave this year.
"It's gotten cold in Mengcheng lately, Jiangxia, would you like to go to an island for a vacation?"
“It’s not far from here, but it’s warmer and warmer there. I sent you a list of recommended restaurants on the island when I went last time. Just try them all.”
"I heard that the island will be closed the year after next. I wonder if it will affect us regular tourists."
"I'll cover all your food and accommodation for the whole trip."
Jiang Xia packed up his materials at 6:00 AM and prepared to contact HR to apply for working from home for the next two hours.
He had set Wu Ming to "Do Not Disturb" mode, so he only saw the fifty-odd messages after taking out his phone.
Jiang Xia read it twice in silence, then couldn't help but chuckle.
The travel time that Wu Ming arranged for him happened to overlap with the time of his engagement banquet.
Jiang Xia was silent for a moment, then typed back: "Okay, then you can come with me."
The message was sent, but no reply was received for a long time.
Jiang Xia knew perfectly well that Wu Ming was being kept at home and his phone was always in his hand, so it was impossible that he hadn't seen the message.
Jiang Xia sent another message: "Why aren't you replying?"
He admitted it was intentional—deliberately exposing Wu Ming's lies.
Wu Ming couldn't possibly skip the engagement party and agree to go on a trip to an island with her.
Half an hour later, Wu Ming replied sheepishly, sounding somewhat aggrieved: "My older brother just invited me to go to an island a while ago, so he definitely won't agree to let me go again."
Jiang Xia raised an eyebrow and replied with only four words: "Okay, I understand."
Wu Ming stared at the four short characters, looking at them repeatedly, trying to discern any trace of life within them.
The feeling of things getting out of control made him uncomfortable.
He slumped onto the edge of the bed, his eyes red as he stared at the screen, his hands trembling as he typed: "Then... I'll have my assistant arrange your schedule right now?"
He clenched his teeth as he typed.
He kept telling Jiang Xia that his relationship with Xie Xingzhang wasn't deep, that he was being forced into the engagement by his family, and that an engagement banquet was impossible.
But if Jiang Xia were to attend her engagement party, the lie would be exposed.
He had to get Jiang Xia out of Mengcheng.
It's good that he's willing to go out...
Jiangxia reports: "I'll contact Assistant Li; it'll be more convenient."
Assistant Li is Wu Ming's personal assistant and also an informant for the Wu family.
Normally, Wu Ming would only ask him to help buy things and do chores.
Jiang Xia contacted Li's assistant and asked him to help buy plane tickets. As for accommodation on the island, he did not want to book in advance, saying that he would decide where to stay after arriving there.
Assistant Li indicated that he understood and would relay the situation to Wu Ming.
Wu Ming's heart finally settled down, and he collapsed onto the bed with a sigh of relief...
Jiang Xia set an alarm to cancel his flight ticket seven days in advance so that he could avoid the handling fee.
When Wu Ming asks, just say the flight schedule changed and you bought another flight. Then, give him a big surprise on the day of the engagement banquet.
Jiang Xia drove home, carried the documents to his house, prepared the cookie ingredients, put them in the oven, and then sent a message to General Manager Zhan.
"Mr. Zhan, how about I deliver it over?"
"Is it done?"
"Soon."
Zhan Lintian replied, "I'm on my way."
Half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Jiang Xia opened the door, and the warm light inside illuminated the tall man outside.
Zhan Lintian stared at Jiang Xia, moved slightly closer, and smelled the sweet scent of biscuits on him...
Seeing his nose twitch, Jiang Xia explained apologetically, "I added a little cream and cheese to improve the texture of the cookies, but most importantly, I forgot to turn on the range hood halfway through baking, so the oven has a minor problem. The smell in the room hasn't dissipated yet."
"By the way, I just took out a piece. Mr. Zhan, could you try it and see if the sweetness is just right?"
Jiang Xia turned and walked towards the kitchen, with Zhan Lintian following closely behind, thinking about the dream he had last night.
Zhan Lintian stood in the middle of the kitchen aisle, his sleeves rolled up, revealing his strong forearms.
The man leaned slightly to one side, bracing himself against the edge of the stove with one hand, and whispered, "Jiang Xia, if Wu Zhou confessed his feelings to you, would you say yes?"
.
A note from the author:
[Sprinkling flowers] Zhan Lintian: Wife, you absolutely mustn't agree!
Wu Zhou: [Angry]
By the way, I saw in the comments section that people were discussing the poet's statement about "a love story where he never remarries, so why does he have a grandson?"
To explain, he remarried.
Therefore, when the poet asked Jiang Xia to tell the tavern story, he only told the first half, because if he told the second half, the love story would be exposed.
Thank you everyone for the landmines, nutrient solutions, and for the favorites and comments.
The good stuff in Rabbit's drafts is really inconvenient to post, like Mr. Zhan's, which he coaxed Jiang Xia into giving away...
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