Chapter 8
It's actually quite simple to deepen a friendship between boys: if one game isn't enough, then two.
Mu Zhengxi wasn't very patient when it came to teaching ball skills, but fortunately, the academic genius's high comprehension ability was evident in every aspect. Plus, with the added benefit of being his brother-in-law, he was generally satisfied with his apprentice, Jiang Jiayi.
"Brother Xi, here's some water."
This is much better than what Mu Yashan is going through.
The sun at 3 pm was so scorching it was almost unbearable. I chug a bottle of mineral water down in one go, sweating profusely. Only a true warrior could play ball in this temperature. It was truly exhilarating.
Mu Zhengxi glanced at Jiang Jiayi, who was sitting on the ground under the tree, and clicked his tongue, "How come you're so pale, like a pretty boy, while your sister is so dark?"
Jiang Jiayi immediately raised her head and retorted, "My sister isn't dark-skinned."
Surprisingly, he didn't immediately deny being a gigolo.
"..."
Blindly obsessing over one's sister doesn't make sense.
Mu Zhengxi handed the bag of cosmetics he had brought from the hotel to Jiang Jiayi and then sat down next to him.
"What is this?"
"For your sister."
Jiang Jia opened the gift bag, took out the packaging box, and saw a dense string of incomprehensible letters. "What is this?"
"Things for girls."
"Huh? Why are you giving it to my sister?"
The heat was making people impatient, so Mu Zhengxi raised his hand and lightly patted Jiang Jiayi on the back of the head. "Just give it to me, why are you asking so many questions?"
"I don't want it." Jiang Jiayi pushed the bag back firmly. "If I accept other people's things without permission, my sister will scold me when I get back."
After saying that, she looked at Mu Zhengxi warily, and then, as if struck by a sudden inspiration, she said, "You, you wouldn't be thinking of pursuing my sister, would you!"
These words struck Mu Zhengxi like a ton of bricks, and he quickly denied it, "Who wants to pursue your sister!"
"Then why did you give her all these things!"
Wow, that expression and tone make you think he's harassing his sister. Now he's not even calling her "brother" anymore, he's just calling her "you." Luckily, Mu Zhengxi was prepared for this. "It's a birthday present I bought for my sister, but she's allergic and can't use it." He licked his lips and added, "Your sister is a girl too, and girls like these kinds of things."
This sounded ridiculous, and Jiang Jiayi clearly didn't believe it. She stood up and asked, "You really don't like my sister?"
It's like interrogating a criminal.
Mu Zhengxi rolled his eyes: "Who likes it?"
"Oh, that's good." Jiang Jiayi was relieved and sat down again. "You should give it to someone else. My sister won't accept it."
"Hey, no, Jiang Jiayi, what do you mean by 'that's good'?" Mu Zhengxi felt this needed to be clarified. "What's wrong with me liking your sister? Is there a problem with that??? Am I not worthy of liking your sister?"
The person shook their head haughtily, indicating, "Not worthy for now."
"Tell me why we're not a good match? Am I not tall enough or not handsome enough?"
Jiang Jiayi answered seriously, "Because I don't really know what kind of person you are. Someone like you must have a lot of girls chasing after you. What if you're a womanizer? Besides, I don't know if you're good at studying. My sister can't date someone with bad grades."
Despite her young age, she has a lot on her mind.
When people are angry, they can be so speechless that they burst out laughing.
Mu Zhengxi pointed at the person and remained silent for a long time before saying, "Fine, I've put so much effort into teaching you how to play these past two days, and this is how you see me, right?"
His youthful face was filled with a profound expression as he began to speak philosophically, “Men, being friends and being husbands are two different things.”
"Who told you that?"
Jiang Jiayi proudly tilted her head back and said, "My dad said so."
Mu Zhengxi was speechless. What he said made sense. It seemed that his father-in-law had done a good job educating Jiang Jiawei about marriage and relationships. "Hey, does your sister have someone she likes?"
Her round eyes darted around. "No."
"You hesitated, Jiang Jiayi!"
He had completely forgotten about whether Jiang Jiawei had a first love. No, this won't do, this isn't fair. He can't be the only one who remains chaste!
Jiang Jia looked up at the person who had suddenly stood in front of her, her expression full of confusion. "Why are you so agitated?"
"I! I... I can't have a relationship like this!"
The person biting the mouth of the mineral water bottle glanced at him and said, "My sister didn't have a boyfriend."
How do you know you didn't?!
"I just know!"
"You two don't even go to the same school, how do you know she doesn't!"
"I just know!" Jiang Jiayi, whose authority as a sister-obsessed woman was severely challenged at this moment, narrowed her eyes and turned the tables on him, "You don't even like my sister, so why are you so concerned about her?"
Mu Zhengxi had something to say but couldn't: I don't like it now, but I'm concerned about my future self!
Jiang Jiayi then concluded definitively, "You like my sister, right? You definitely want to pursue her, right?" She might even be using the basketball game as an opportunity to get closer to his sister.
"Who likes her, who pursues her."
The mouth is faster than the brain.
The even more arrogant person turned and walked away with their hands in their pockets, saying, "Whether you like it or not."
Jiang Jiayi shook her head as she watched his retreating figure. Men, they're all so hypocritical.
Hey, you forgot your things!
"Throw it away!"
“Okay.” Jiang Jiayi shrugged and said casually, “My sister hates people who waste things the most.”
Damn, you're trying to mess with me, aren't you? You two siblings teamed up to play me for fools.
Back at the hotel, Mu Zhengxi casually tossed the bag off the table into an out-of-see corner, feeling much better. He couldn't understand why he had inexplicably bought such a gift.
He picked up a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed it, and drank most of it to calm his nerves. There was a serious problem he had overlooked: it seemed that it was actually him who pursued Jiang Jiawei.
But why?! By what right?!
With such a handsome guy like him standing right in front of her, Jiang Jiawei didn't feel anything at all?
Mu Zhengxi couldn't figure it out, and his steps automatically followed behind the girl with a ponytail and wearing a purple school uniform.
Chen Jingyu: "My brother and my mom are going to my aunt's house tomorrow afternoon. I'll call you then and you can come over."
Jiang Jiawei: "Okay."
"I'm leaving now, bye-bye."
"Bye-Bye."
At the fork in the road, the two said goodbye.
The evening breeze swept through the streets, carrying the aroma of red bean paste wheel cakes.
"Three more cups of milk tea."
"OK."
How much is it in total?
"It's thirteen yuan in total."
"Auntie, those three wheel cakes need to be packed separately."
"Okay, here you go, little sister, be careful it's hot."
"Thank you, Auntie."
The person standing under the tree not far away seemed to be thinking about something.
"This wheel cake is delicious, and my brother likes it very much too."
"Huh?" Mu Zhengxi blinked, looking at Jiang Jiawei who suddenly appeared in front of him, feeling as awkward as if his acupoint had been struck.
"My brother said you've been teaching him basketball these past few days." Jiang Jiawei handed the milk tea to the man, smiled at him, and said, "He's very happy, thank you."
Because he skipped a grade and entered high school early, Jiang Jiayi lost contact with many of his peers. After entering high school, he was clearly not as happy as before and always kept to himself, but he didn't say why. He had grown up and had the pride of a boy, so Jiang Jiawei didn't press him for details.
Mu Zhengxi waved his hand, "I don't know anyone here, so it was just a good opportunity to hang out. Besides, your dad often treats me to food."
The aroma of red beans packaged in a paper bag wafted to my nose, and my stomach was rumbling, more than three hours after dinner.
Jiang Jiawei reminded him, "It's a little hot."
"Oops." She pulled back her teeth, which were about to bite down, and carefully took a bite of the edge.
He casually glanced at the person beside him, but before he could look away, Jiang Jiawei caught his gaze.
It's in their eyes, and it's in their movements.
Were you... following me just now?
His image was seen in bookstores, in dollar stores, in glass windows, and in mirrors.
Bang.
It exploded.
Mu Zhengxi felt as hot as this scalding wheel cake at that moment. "Hey, no, I didn't mean to follow you, ptooey what follow me, I was—" This newly tamed human, his words catching in his throat, stammered, "I was, I actually was, I—"
Jiang Jiawei bit her straw. "Which one?" Her calm and quiet eyes held neither questioning nor any hint of looking at a pervert.
"Actually, I am." Clutching the iced milk tea in her hand, she couldn't tell for a moment whether the sweat on her palms was from the condensed steam on the cup. Her heroic spirit had evaporated without a trace, leaving only cowardice.
She lowered her head slightly and said, "I just want to be friends with you."
After saying that, Mu Zhengxi felt like burying his head in his grave. Only a kindergarten kid would say something like that.
"OK."
Jiang Jiawei's straightforward response surprised the person who asked to be friends with her a second time.
She turned her head and asked, "Are you serious about making friends?"
As they walked onto the overpass, the ancestral hall worship ceremony not far away ended, and fireworks shot into the sky, startling both of them the moment they exploded.
As they locked eyes, a dead memory resurfaced and fiercely attacked Mu Zhengxi.
"Isn't it beautiful?"
"very beautiful."
Do you like it?
"I've seen fireworks like this several times, they're exactly the same."
After his perfunctory intentions were seen through, his hands, which were in his pockets, unconsciously clenched, and a worm called shame crawled up his back.
"Jung-hee".
"Um?"
"If you like me, let's have a serious relationship."
The fireworks reflected in her eyes, which still held a gentle, tolerant smile, devoid of anger but tinged with disappointment.
"If it's just a passing fancy out of boredom, then let's forget about it."
Jiang Wenqing said that relationships should be taken seriously, whether it's friendship or dating.
Damn, this person can't be me.
"Hey Jiang Jiawei, let me treat you to some pineapple."
There were vendors pushing carts on the overpass.
"OK."
Mu Zhengxi turned his head and noticed that Jiang Jiawei's eyelashes were quite long; he was worried that they would poke her eyes when she blinked.
"This red bean cake is delicious."
"I'll treat you again next time if you like it," Jiang Jiawei joked. "No, next time you should ask my brother to treat you."
"Yes, I didn't charge him tuition."
"Is it okay to set off fireworks like this here?"
"Yeah, is it not possible on your end?"
"No, that won't work, there will be a fine."
"We still have some leftovers from the New Year celebrations. Do you want to go play on the rooftop later?"
"ah?"
This invitation was truly unexpected.
"Shall we go?"
"go."
Why don't you go?
Customers are buying braised food at the shop entrance.
Jiang Weichao finished packing the bags for the customer and turned around to see the two of them walking back. "Zhengxi is here."
Hello, Uncle.
Hearing the noise, Jiang Jiayi immediately ran out, "Sister, why are you only coming back now?" Then she saw the person following behind her, "Brother Xi."
"Why are you two together?!"
Jiang Jiawei explained, "I ran into them on the way." She handed over the milk tea and wheel cake she had brought back to them.
"Sis, you brought me wheel cakes!"
"Jia Yi, what about the fireworks we had for Chinese New Year?"
"They're upstairs, wanna play?"
Jiang Weichao, seeing Mu Zhengxi staring at the glass display case, said very considerately, "Zhengxi, shall I get you a duck leg to try?"
Their eyes sparkled with light.
Jiang Weichao smiled and opened the glass cabinet door, taking out a large, golden-brown braised duck leg with a salty-sweet aroma from a transparent plastic bag, and handed it to someone.
"How much, uncle?"
"Don't say that, I'll treat you to a meal."
"No, that would be too embarrassing."
The person waving their hand repeatedly refused.
So Jiang Weichao joked, "Help me taste it to see if it's salty enough," and forced it into the person's hand.
This is truly an invitation that is hard to refuse.
As the saying goes, a half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home.
They had only filled half the stomach of the growing carnivore after eating all the way.
"Is it tasty?"
The person, with their mouth stuffed full, licked the sauce around their lips and nodded vigorously.
Raising children, the most enjoyable thing is eating well, which gives you a great sense of accomplishment. Jiang Weichao looked at Mu Zhengxi with satisfaction, and his affection for the child grew even stronger.
"Mu Zhengxi".
Mu Zhengxi turned around and saw Jiang Jiawei standing at the top of the stairs looking at him, waving a large handful of firecrackers at him.
"Yes, my dad runs a breakfast shop. His soy milk is delicious, and our family's braised dishes are also very good, especially the braised duck legs. It's a pity we don't have a chance, otherwise I could treat you to a meal."
When the reporter made malicious sarcastic remarks about her family background, Jiang Jiawei responded to the nickname "Braised Food Girl" in this way.
"Mu Zhengxi?"
"Oh, here it comes."
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