Chapter 148 People's tastes change
As darkness fell, Ruan Yi hunched over and returned to the villa. As she passed the dining room, she was met with a fixed gaze.
The man sat at the head of the long table, his face darker than the night outside the window. A table full of exquisite dishes was still steaming, clearly having been left out for quite some time.
Shen Xun didn't touch a single bite, looking like a resentful husband who couldn't wait for his wife to come home and was seething with anger.
Ruan Yi paused for a moment, but finally slunk away to the seat opposite him and muttered under her breath.
"I didn't make you wait for me..."
"You!" Shen Xun swallowed back the words he wanted to say to the girl, but his gaze remained fixed on her until he saw her take the cutlery. Only then did the man finally take the first bite.
The only sounds in the restaurant were the soft clinking of knives and forks. Ruan Yi ate with a heavy heart, hoping that the man in front of her wouldn't ask her where she had been. But what she feared most was exactly what happened.
Seeing her lack of appetite, Shen Xun coldly said, "Eating like a thief, are you going to investigate a case or catch up with your lover?"
"Cough, cough..."
Yes, she's a complete time management master now. She only reluctantly agreed to Shen Xun's request yesterday.
But after learning from Pei Lian that he was the culprit, she couldn't help but surrender to Fu Jingchen's gentleness, unable to break free or let go.
Isn't this... a bit too much?
How did her emotional situation become like this, entangled with this group of people?
I feel a little ashamed, but not much.
After all, none of these men asked for her opinion when they came up to her!
When Ruan Yi spoke again, she completely ignored Shen Xun's sarcastic tone, "Are you involved in Fu Jingchen's case? Has the police contacted you?"
Shen Xun's brows furrowed instantly, and his tone became harsh and aggressive: "Why are you asking this? Are you gathering information for your lover?"
Ruan Yi finally couldn't help but raise her voice, "I told you not to shout such an awful sound!"
Although she had felt somewhat guilty before, when she heard that despicable name again, she was filled with righteous indignation.
She and Shen Xun didn't actually have anything happen between them, yet she was still considered his fiancée; her relationship with Fu Jingchen was real, but because of this status, it seemed illegitimate.
Shen Xun seemed to have heard something interesting. He leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed intently on Ruan Yi, speaking slowly and sternly, word by word.
"Okay, then I'll say it another way."
"Are you gathering information for that vixen—that homewrecker, the third party, the other man, the one who seduces someone else's fiancée?"
"Chen Xun!" Ruan Yi couldn't help but slam her hand on the table when she heard the man utter this string of unpleasant terms.
When her palm landed, she could clearly feel the man opposite her stiffen, and even the corners of his eyes turned red.
Ruan Yi, who was about to get angry, swallowed back the words of abuse she had said when she saw Shen Xun's appearance.
It wasn't that she was reluctant to part with him; it was that Ms. Ruan suddenly realized that she was somewhat like a scumbag who insulted a stay-at-home husband at the dinner table and spoke up for the other woman.
A deathly silence fell over the dining table, making the man's sharp jawline appear even colder and harder. Ruan Yi lowered her eyes, not wanting to look at him.
The next second, Shen Xun slammed down his knife and fork as if he couldn't contain his anger, "The wedding date is set for next month."
The man's tone was as hard as iron, leaving no room for negotiation.
Ruan Yi instinctively retorted, "I did agree, but I didn't say it would be so soon!"
"Is a month not enough for you to figure out what exactly happened?" The man's question was laced with suppressed anger.
"We'll get married when we get back to China, you promised."
Shen Xun leaned forward, his gaze fixed on her. "Or, are you going to tell me now—that you regret it?"
Ruan Yi instinctively wanted to defend herself, but she swallowed the words back. She couldn't very well say that she had just given in yesterday, and then today, upon seeing the adulterer... she was bewitched again.
If she said that, the person in front of her would probably explode on the spot. She could only stare blankly at the man opposite her, unable to utter a single word in rebuttal.
I was mentally prepared, but I never expected it to be so rushed.
The urgency made her realize clearly... she was simply not ready to face this marriage.
The notes passed between desks in high school, the ice-cold cola shared between two people, the umbrella shared in the rain—the ambiguity and excitement of those childhood sweethearts were not fake.
But too much time had passed, and Gu Zhi's meddling was like a deep ditch. Later, she encountered too many people and things, which gradually dissipated the hormones in Ruan Yi's youthful memories.
Having seen a wider world and had more choices, she can no longer imagine herself standing next to a man in a wedding dress.
But she didn't dare say a single word of these things.
Lin Han told her that Shen Xun was known in the industry for upholding male virtues and being difficult to approach. Even though the two of them had a huge fight, Shen Xun never gave a good look to women who took the initiative to be friendly.
A few years ago, when the two were at their most bitter, and rumors circulated that the marriage between the Ruan and Chen families was about to fall through, a young lady from a prominent family took the initiative to propose marriage.
When Shen's father tried to arrange the marriage, Shen Xun got very angry and smashed everything he could, almost tearing the house down.
Frightened, Mr. Shen and Aunt Jiang never dared to utter another word about "canceling the engagement" or "choosing another person."
In Chen Xun's world, it seems there is only his fiancée and his work.
From my youth to now, it has never changed.
This bitter realization gently pierced Ruan Yixin's heart. Looking at the man's taut jawline, she knew he was still angry because of Fu Jingchen.
The man was still sulking, but he gently pushed the soup bowl towards her with his fingertips. It was creamy mushroom soup, a drink she had loved since childhood.
However, people's tastes change.
She doesn't like drinking it anymore.
Ruan Yi looked at the hot-tempered but virtuous man in front of her who had been devoted to her since childhood, and found it hard to swallow.
She ultimately didn't say a word, only turning her face to the window, using silence to resist his announcement of "we're getting married next month."
She couldn't think of any other way but to escape.
As Shen Xun watched the girl turn her face away, the anger in his chest slowly dissipated, leaving only a dense, persistent pain.
He had never bowed his head to anyone in his life, but with her, he was an exception since he was young.
But he was clumsy with words, unable to say sweet nothings, and didn't know how to use fancy methods to please her. He also often made stupid mistakes.
The man could only stare blankly at Ruan Yi's profile, his eyes red.
Does Ruan Yi know? Does he know that whenever she's around, he can't take his eyes off anyone else?
Did he know that when he heard she wanted to break off the engagement, he tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep, and could only stare blankly at the old hair tie she left at his house?
Could it be that... she might even think that his love for her is far less than that of Gu Zhi, who has always been scheming?
When the man's heart ached, he glanced at the bowl of creamy mushroom soup in front of the girl. She only took two sips and then stopped eating, clearly finding it too rich.
Shen Xun didn't say anything, but directly reached out and took the soup bowl, picked up the spoon she had used, and drank it all up, leaving not even the mushroom bits at the bottom of the bowl.
Looking at the empty soup bowl, Ruan Yi felt a surge of frustration.
Why is it always like this? On one hand, they force her to make a choice, and on the other hand, they try to appease her in this clumsy way, leaving her unable to even get angry.
It made her feel like a bad person who started something and then abandoned it, and she was filled with indescribable frustration.
No matter how much you try to escape, you eventually have to come to a conclusion.
She's not some kind of overpowered heroine; if she really gave every man who's around her a home, she'd suffer from kidney deficiency...
Ruan Yi put down her cutlery, wiped her mouth clean, and said, "I know about the wedding date." She neither agreed nor disagreed, and then turned and went upstairs.
Shen Xun froze on the spot, still holding the soup bowl she had used. He stood there stunned for a full half minute before he realized what she had just said.
"I understand... what does that mean?"
"Does that mean you've agreed to the wedding date next month and won't back out?"
He clenched his fists tighter, holding the bowl even more firmly, his heart pounding as if it would burst out of his chest, but the next second he was overcome by unease.
He was afraid, afraid that this was just another delaying tactic on her part, afraid that when he was finally overjoyed, she would refuse him again.
"Ruan Yi...please stop playing tricks on me, okay?"
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