Chapter 75 Darkness
"Birthday star, make a wish!"
Just as Jiang Wan placed the cake on the dining table, Zhang Chi called out to go turn off the lights.
"Wait a minute, the candles haven't been lit yet."
Jiang Wan was about to turn around to find candles when she saw Zhou Chong holding a bunch of candles and counting them one by one.
Zhou Chong confirmed the quantity and handed the bundle of candles to Jiang Wan, "18 candles."
The cake was huge, and it was two-tiered; it could easily hold 18 candles.
Jiang Wan took the candle, then gave half of it back to Zhou Chong, saying, "Can you help me put the candles in? Just arrange them around the edge of the top layer of the cake."
She paused, then added, "18 candles are a bit too many. It's too slow for me to put them all in by myself."
The explanation sounded a bit forced. Jiang Wan had already heard Sun Qianyu's snickering, but Zhou Chong didn't seem to notice, or rather, he didn't care.
He took the half candle, smiled, and said, "Okay."
The two of them together placed 18 candles on the cake one by one.
The long, thin, wavy candles form a circle around the edge of the upper cake, resembling undulating golden waves.
"I'll go turn off the lights then." Seeing this, Zhang Chi got up and ran to the door of the private room to turn off the lights.
Just as the overhead lights were about to go out, Luo Xuan pulled a lighter out of his pocket and tossed it to Zhou Chong, saying, "Here, quickly light the candles."
Zhou Chong paused for a second, just as he realized what Luo Xuan meant, the private room was plunged into darkness.
"Thank you." Before standing up, Zhou Chong thanked Luo Xuan softly, then lit the lighter in his hand.
The only light in the darkness was now dancing on his fingertips.
Jiang Wan sat to his right. Zhou Chong turned to look at her. The firelight illuminated her fair and delicate face, and in the dim light, her bright and clear almond-shaped eyes curved towards him.
With her permission, Zhou Chong lit the candles on the cake one by one. His handsome and deep face was reflected in the firelight, and with each candle lit, the starlight in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
As Jiang Wan watched Zhou Chong light the candles for her, she suddenly remembered that on New Year's Eve, she and he sat on a bench outside the North Gate, and Zhou Chong did the same thing, lighting the sparklers for her one by one.
She insisted on lighting one after another after finishing the first one, and Zhou Chong patiently took the burnt-out wire rod from her hand and lit the next one for her.
The instant the firelight ignited, Zhou Chong's sharp features softened slightly, becoming gentle and warm.
After all the candles were lit, Zhou Chong returned the lighter to Luo Xuan and waited with the others for Jiang Wan to make a wish.
Amidst everyone's expectant gazes, Jiang Wan closed her eyes, clasped her hands together in front of her chest, and solemnly made her second 18th birthday wish.
To be honest, Jiang Wan couldn't quite remember what she wished for on her last 18th birthday.
In her previous life, she had a smooth and successful life, and had everything she wanted. She didn't care much about making wishes, nor did she have any particular desires to fulfill.
I treat it as just another part of the birthday celebration ritual. I simply mutter a few words to myself about what's about to happen, hoping it will go smoothly. That's all.
But this time, she made her wish very seriously.
I hope God can hear this; after all, we can't just send her back to ten years ago for nothing.
A full half minute passed before Jiang Wan finally opened her eyes; the candle had burned down to just half a stick.
"You've been making wishes for quite a while now," Sun Qianyu exclaimed in surprise. "Did you make a whole series of wishes to God?"
Jiang Wan stuck out her tongue. "I won't tell you, or it won't work anymore."
"Yes, yes, I can't say it out loud." Sun Qianyu chuckled softly, "I can probably guess it."
Jiang Wan smiled but didn't say anything. She knew what Sun Qianyu meant, but that was just one of the wishes she made. She was greedy; the wishes she made to God were not things that she could achieve through her own efforts.
Only when one has done their best and left the rest to fate is there any need to make a wish.
"Alright, hurry up and blow out the candles, or they'll go out," Luo Xuan urged from the side. "The wishing ceremony isn't over yet; it's not finished until you blow out all the candles."
Jiang Wan quickly propped herself up, clasped her hands together, took a deep breath, and devoutly blew out all the candles.
After the candle went out, darkness enveloped the surroundings.
As Jiang Wan stepped back, her hand accidentally bumped into a wine glass on the table.
With a "clink," the stem of the goblet struck the glass turntable of the round table with a crisp sound.
Jiang Wan frantically tried to steady the cup to prevent it from breaking, but in the darkness she felt something warm.
A hand with distinct knuckles grasped hers, and she felt a tremor in her heart, instantly forgetting about the cup.
In the darkness, she couldn't see, but she knew it was Zhou Chong's hand.
The memory of the touch of his hand was so vivid that she could recall it reflexively with just a light touch.
However, now, instead of the back of her hand touching his palm, their palms are clasped together.
A large, powerful hand firmly held her hand.
Taking advantage of the darkness, Jiang Wan, emboldened by some unknown source, greedily curled her fingers and intertwined them tightly with Zhou Chong's.
Let her be unrestrained this once; it's her birthday today.
If asked after the lights are turned on, she will say that she was panicked and scared in the dark, and unconsciously grabbed his hand. She didn't know it was him and didn't do it on purpose.
Yes, that's a perfect excuse.
Within seconds, Jiang Wan had quickly come up with an excuse.
So, they greedily clenched their fingers even tighter.
Within seconds, the room was brightly lit again.
Jiang Wan was momentarily disoriented by the change in light, so she squinted. When she opened her eyes again, Zhou Chong's handsome face with its sharp features appeared before her.
Those dark, deep eyes stared at him without blinking.
Only then did she realize that she and he had been facing each other in the darkness, and were so close together.
Their hands were still tightly clasped together; neither of them let go first.
It wasn't until she heard Luo Xuan cough lightly that Jiang Wan seemed to realize what was happening. She quickly relaxed her strength and was about to say the words she had just prepared when she suddenly realized another problem.
Where's the cup?
After that "ding," she seemed not to hear any further sounds of glass shattering.
Looking down, she noticed that Zhou Chong's other hand was firmly holding her wine glass.
With his palm facing down and his slender fingers gripping the rim of the cup, he was so steady that not a single drop of coconut juice spilled.
Following her gaze, Zhou Chong lowered his head and handed her the cup, saying, "Here you go."
"Thank you." Jiang Wan took the cup, casually took a sip of coconut juice, and glared at Luo Xuan as she did so.
Fortunately, thanks to the tablecloth, and given their posture just now, only Luo Xuan saw what happened; the others were unaware of what had transpired.
Luo Xuan rested his hands behind his head, leaning back lazily in his chair, glancing sideways at Jiang Wan and Zhou Chong, and smiled knowingly.
"Cut the cake, what are you doing?"
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