Chapter 14
Wen Yan thought to herself: He really has ulterior motives towards me, doesn't he? Why is he always there wherever I am, like a persistent ghost! On the surface, however, she pretended to be calm, nodded to Sang Nian, and walked past him without saying a word as she exited the elevator.
Sang Nian watched his retreating figure, a smile playing on his lips. He slowly turned around, and amidst the hotel receptionist's puzzled expression, asked, "Excuse me, where is the nearest pharmacy? My foot is injured." With that, he rolled up his trouser leg.
The receptionist then exclaimed in surprise, "Sir, what's wrong with you...?"
Sang Nian took a breath, his expression restrained. "I twisted it yesterday, and I thought it was nothing serious, but I didn't expect it to be even worse today." As he spoke, he kept staring at Wen Yan's profile.
Wen Yan seemed not to hear him. He said to another receptionist who was standing there, "The air conditioner in my room seems to be malfunctioning. It's not heating. Can you help me change to another room?"
Wen Yan was handsome, humble, and spoke in a voice as gentle as a spring breeze. Upon hearing this, the receptionist immediately smiled and said yes, but then clicked her tongue in confusion. She then said apologetically, "Sir, I'm very sorry, but the hotel has no other rooms available."
Wen Yan was taken aback.
The receptionist then explained, "There's a small architectural design competition being held in Dingzhou these past two days. The organizers arranged accommodation at our hotel, and given today's extreme weather, tourists who come to Dingzhou can't go home and have to stay another night..."
Wen Yan had no choice but to accept; the receptionist was right. Dingzhou is a small coastal city that has become well-known in recent years for its well-preserved ancient architectural sites, and its tourism industry is gradually booming. He was there today as a judge for the competition, so he nodded nonchalantly, "It's alright, I'll go to another one." He then turned to go back to pack his luggage, but was stopped.
"Sir, I'm really sorry, but we're the only hotel in Dingzhou right now. The other small inns aren't very hygienic..."
As he spoke, Wen Yan's brows furrowed tightly. He thought to himself that it wouldn't be a big deal to just stay up all night, but at that moment, Sang Nian, who had been talking to another receptionist, suddenly spoke up.
"Brother Wen Yan, would you like to stay in my room for the night?" Sang Nian turned her head and said to Wen Yan. Her gaze did not fall on Wen Yan, but instead looked at the receptionist who was greeting Wen Yan.
The receptionist blushed suspiciously at his gaze. She glanced at Wen Yan, then at Sang Nian, and asked, "Do you two know each other?"
"know."
"Not familiar with it."
Sang Nian and Wen Yan spoke at the same time. Hearing Wen Yan's answer, Sang Nian was not surprised, but just smiled and explained to the receptionist, "He is my boss." Then she repeated her suggestion.
After saying that, he added, "We can add another bed."
"Yes, yes, we can add an extra bed for you. Sir, the temperature drops sharply tonight, and it will be very cold without air conditioning. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused by the broken air conditioning in the hotel. We can compensate you, please see..."
"No need." Wen Yan interrupted the receptionist, her gaze falling on Sang Nian, her brows furrowing almost into a deep frown.
Sang Nian's expression was open and honest, a faint smile playing on his lips. His gaze was fixed on something behind him, as if waiting for his reply. Seeing him like this, Wen Yan suddenly stopped worrying.
He wanted to see what Sang Nian was up to.
He smiled and patted Sang Nian on the shoulder, saying with a smile, "Then thank you."
Upon hearing his agreement, Sang Nian loosened his grip, smiled brightly, and his dimples were clearly visible under the bright lights of the lobby.
"I live in 1208."
Upon hearing this, the two front desk staff immediately said, "Then we'll arrange a bed for you right now."
Wen Yan nodded and said thank you, then planned to go back to his room to wash up before going to Sang Nian's room to sleep. He turned to leave, but found Sang Nian standing there motionless.
He recalled the conversation he had just overheard, and glanced down. Sang Nian's rolled-up trouser legs were still there, and the bruised and swollen area looked quite gruesome.
Wen Yan unconsciously frowned.
He knew Sang Nian was going out to buy medicine, but given the weather outside... Wen Yan finally softened. After all, no matter how bad Sang Nian was, he was still Sang Ning's younger brother. They would become family in the future and see each other all the time. Besides, he had indeed solved a big problem for him tonight.
So he asked curtly, "What medicine do you want to buy?"
Sang Nian was taken aback at first, then smiled brightly. He quickly recited the names of several medicines and thanked Wen Yan again at the end.
Wen Yan noted down the names of the medicines, said nothing more, and turned to leave.
"Brother Wenyan."
Sang Nian called out to him.
Wen Yan frowned and turned around, wondering what was wrong with him, but saw Sang Nian handing him the umbrella.
"It's raining outside, Brother Wenyan."
"Hmm." Wen Yan hummed a single word through his nose, then grabbed his umbrella and walked towards the door. After he left, Sang Nian also planned to return to her room, but found the two girls at the front desk unusually excited, whispering to each other.
I couldn't quite make out what they were saying, only vaguely catching a few words: "The bottom is so beautiful," "The top seems aloof on the surface but is secretly delighted," "They're such a good match," "I'm shipping them"...
Sang Nian was staying in a suite, but the bedroom was quite small, so the bed had to be placed in the living room. Sang Nian was a little disappointed about this, as she had thought she would be able to sleep in the same room as Wen Yan tonight.
However, Wen Yan was quite satisfied after seeing it, and smiled with his eyes narrowed.
I thought I would be sleeping in the same room as Sang Nian tonight.
Each with their own thoughts, they took a shower and lay down on the bed. Sang Nian was somewhat excited, both because Wen Yan was sleeping next door and because he had braved the freezing rain to buy medicine for him. Applying the medicine caused a lot of pain to the wound, but he smiled, as if he were touching Wen Yan's heart, not medicine.
As the sound of rain outside gradually subsided, Sang Nian, unable to withstand the day's exhaustion, finally closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
Around 2 a.m., Wen Yan was awakened by a low sobbing sound. He frowned, got up, and looked towards the bedroom. The sound was intermittent, restrained and painful, accompanied by crying and the occasional cry of "brother".
Sang Nian's sleeping face didn't look as flamboyant as usual; it was very calm. His brows were slightly furrowed, his expression was sorrowful, and his rosy lips were slightly parted, from which a few suppressed cries escaped.
"elder brother."
Wen Yan certainly didn't think his wailing was calling for Sang Ning. He'd heard that before he returned to the Sang family, he'd been adopted by an orphan for eleven years, and the two had lived in Dingzhou.
He bumped into Sang Nian in the elevator and subconsciously assumed that Sang Nian had come with him, but now that he thinks about it, that's not the case.
But if he came to see that brother, why would he stay in a hotel alone, and even unconsciously feel sad and upset in the middle of the night?
Wen Yan couldn't figure it out. But then he realized that he was currently filled with curiosity about Sang Nian, which was not a good omen. So he quietly left the bedroom, but instead of going back to bed, he stood on the balcony.
The heavy rain had stopped sometime earlier, and snowflakes began to fall outside the window again. He stood quietly for a while, then checked his phone and saw that Sang Ning had sent him a message while he was asleep.
“Brother Wenyan, New Year’s Day is just a few days away. Let’s go hiking to watch the sunrise and go skiing! You don’t have time for Christmas, but you can have time for New Year’s Day.”
"Complaint.jpg"
Is it almost New Year's Eve again?
In the past, he and Sang Ning had always spent New Year's Eve together. They had grown up together since childhood. Later, Sang Ning confessed her feelings to him and he accepted. Although his parents disapproved of the Sang family, they never objected, only saying that he was happy.
This is tantamount to acknowledging his relationship with Sang Ning.
Xu Muchen's words echoed in his ears again, making him undeniably a scumbag. But there was nothing he could do; Sang Ning liked him, and he couldn't refuse her and cause her pain.
That's all we can do.
When he woke up, it was almost nine o'clock. Sang Nian had a rare good night's sleep, which he attributed to Wen Yan sleeping with him for the night, even though they were in two separate beds and two separate rooms.
The first thing he did after getting up was to go to the living room to check on Wen Yan, only to find that Wen Yan was already gone. The bedding was already cold, and Sang Ning's lips instantly pressed into a straight line. He sat on Wen Yan's bed, picked up the pillow somewhat uncontrollably, and took a deep breath.
It smells like a banquet.
The citrus flavor from five years ago is long gone, replaced by a mature masculine scent.
Sang Nian took a few more puffs to satisfy his slightly perverse desires. Then his gaze was drawn to a stack of red banknotes on the coffee table. He picked them up, counted them, and let out a cold laugh.
Young Master Wen is really generous, giving two thousand for a single night of sex.
After having brunch and packing his things, Sang Nian set off on his journey home. Because of the freezing rain and blizzard that had fallen the night before, the roads were extremely difficult to drive on, and the car tires would easily slip if one was not careful.
The driver was clearly unprepared for this situation, especially since the drive from Dingzhou to Haishi usually takes more than four hours. After getting flustered and sweating profusely, he apologized to Sang Nian, asking if they could stay another night in Dingzhou, as driving back now would be dangerous.
Sang Nian lowered his head and thought for a moment, about to agree, when he saw Wen Yan's car drive out of the underground parking garage. It wasn't his usual Bugatti, but a matte metallic gray Mercedes-Benz G-Class, which Sang Nian had seen before in the design institute's parking lot. As soon as the car drove out, it attracted many envious glances. Sang Nian thought for a moment, then said to the driver, "I'm not taking your car today. I'll pay you as usual. You can go back to the hotel." After saying that, he hurriedly got out of the car.
As soon as Wen Yan's car pulled out, he saw Sang Nian standing by the roadside with a bag in her hand. He intended to pretend he didn't see her, but after the car had driven a few meters away, he inexplicably made the driver step on the brakes.
Through the rearview mirror, he saw Sang Nian's fair and smooth face, delicate and aloof, with a blush on her cheeks amidst the falling snow. Her slender body was wrapped in a thick white down jacket, her left foot was slightly raised, and she looked somewhat troubled, shivering in the cold wind.
He got out of the car with a frown, his face very grim, and spoke to Sang Nian in a rather harsh tone: "What are you doing here?"
Sang Nian beckoned with his finger out of Wen Yan's sight, then turned on his phone and said with some helplessness, "I need to go back to Hai City. I originally hailed a taxi, but the driver canceled the order because he thought the road was bad, and no other driver has accepted my order since."
After Sang Nian finished speaking, he saw that Wen Yan didn't seem to believe him and stared at him without saying a word. Feeling uneasy under Wen Yan's gaze, he forced a smile and said, "How about I stay in Dingzhou for another day? Anyway, the design institute hasn't had much to do lately. I'll trouble you, Mr. Wen, with the leave request..." His tone was somewhat cautious as he looked up at Wen Yan as he spoke.
Wen Yan was amused and annoyed by his clumsy excuse. Normally, he could have refused without hesitation and left immediately. But facing Sang Nian, facing this Sang Nian who seemed like a different person during the day and at night, facing this Sang Nian who had approached him time and time again, he didn't want to do that.
A mocking smile curled at the corner of his lips as he fixed his gaze on Sang Nian's face, his tone cold: "Sang Nian, you should know that Sang Ning and I are getting engaged after the New Year, right?"
Sang Nian trembled imperceptibly. He looked up at Wen Yan, his expression somewhat hurt. But it was only for a moment; a smile quickly returned to his lips.
“I know,” Sang Nian said slowly, drawing out his words. Despite Wen Yan’s increasingly gloomy expression, he said unhurriedly, “But what does that have to do with me liking you?”
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