Chapter 28, 028 "Boyfriend?"
When it comes to saying goodnight before bed, Chan Miu-ying has always been exceptionally persistent.
In her little world, this was an indispensable ritual every night since she could remember.
If there's no "goodnight" message and my parents don't "ask for leave" beforehand, I absolutely can't fall asleep peacefully.
Chen Sulin was naturally aware of this as well.
The man sighed helplessly, a rare occurrence for him. He bent down and stroked his daughter's hair, then relented, "Let's go, let's go to your room now."
Chen Miaoying nodded emphatically: "Yes!"
"Mom!" she waved to Meng Ran, who was further away, "You have to come too!"
Seeing her mother walk over, Chen Miaoying tilted her head in confusion: "Mom, why are you wearing Dad's clothes?"
Meng Ran: "...Mom is a little cold."
Chen Miaoying gave a bewildered "Oh".
But she didn't feel cold at all.
It seems Dad was right; Mom's health hasn't fully recovered yet.
Chen Miaoying walked in front, went back to her room and climbed into her own bed. Even though she was so sleepy that she could barely keep her eyes open, she still forced herself to stay awake and make sure her parents came to her bedside.
After her parents said goodnight and gave her a goodnight kiss, Chen Miaoying was finally satisfied.
She hugged her blanket tightly, half-closing her eyes and muttering, "Mommy, why are your lips so red?"
Meng Ran gripped her coat tightly, and unusually, she lied to the child: "Because Mommy wore lipstick."
“Oh…” Chen Miaoying murmured, “Then I want to wear lipstick too.”
Meng Ran smiled and replied softly, "No, children shouldn't wear lipstick."
Chen Miaoying: "I'm already in kindergarten, I won't be a little kid anymore..."
While muttering to herself, the little girl, having completed her bedtime ritual, finally closed her eyes and went to meet the Duke of Zhou in her dreams.
As they came out of the children's room, Meng Ran and Chen Sulin exchanged a glance.
She pulled her coat tighter around herself, lowered her eyes, and said, "Then I'll go back and rest too."
Kissing requires the right atmosphere and state of mind.
After Chen Miaoying forcibly cooled down her feverish brain, Meng Ran could no longer block out all reason and restraint as before, and indulge herself in intimate contact with Chen Sulin.
Let alone kissing, even being in the same room with him again would make her hesitate.
After calming down, they returned to being a respectful and loving couple.
Perhaps Chen Sulin had the same thought.
Although she didn't look up to see his expression, she heard the man give a low "hmm" and not stop her.
Back in her room, Meng Ran closed the bedroom door tightly and sat on the bed, feeling utterly exhausted.
Her legs were still a little weak. It was the first time she had realized that kissing was such a physically demanding activity.
After lying in bed for a while, Meng Ran felt the weight on her shoulders and slowly realized what was happening—
She was still wearing the coat that Chen Sulin had given her.
Meng Ran took off her coat, and a faint, familiar, cool fragrance lingered around her nose.
She had gotten so used to his scent that she hadn't even realized she was wearing his clothes just now.
It was getting late, and she and Chen Sulin had just shared a passionate kiss in the room. Meng Ran didn't dare to risk knocking on Chen Sulin's door at this time.
Impulsiveness and courage are fleeting. Just a few minutes ago she was thinking of indulging herself, but now all her concerns have returned.
Meng Ran touched the fabric in her hand, hesitated for a moment, then got up, intending to return the clothes to Chen Sulin the next morning.
After hanging up my clothes in the changing area, the contrast between the light silk nightgown and the crisp men's coat was striking.
Meng Ran pursed her lips, ignoring the strange unease that was rising within her, and walked into the bathroom.
The woman in the mirror looked both familiar and strange.
Meng Ran's skin was originally almost pale, and her lips were also pale, so much so that Jiang Yuqing used to say that she looked like she had poor blood circulation and told her to eat more meat.
At this moment, her entire face in the mirror had a rosy glow, especially noticeable on her thin cheeks, as if she had applied too much blush.
Her lips were incredibly red, no wonder Chen Miaoying asked about it earlier.
Meng Ran quickly looked away, otherwise, if she looked any longer, it would remind her of the kiss she had just shared with Chen Sulin.
I quickly took off my clothes and showered. After washing myself clean, all those random thoughts finally disappeared from my mind.
The fatigue from a day out finally returned.
Meng Ran hugged her blanket and drifted off to sleep.
...
Saturday morning.
Inside the restaurant, Chen Miaoying was holding a loaf of bread in one hand and a spoon in the other, intently spreading chocolate sauce on her toast, as if she were completing some important task.
This is her favorite breakfast, so even the process of preparing it is a happy one.
Unfortunately, her father wouldn't let her eat this every morning, so she could only satisfy her craving on weekends.
After meticulously spreading the chocolate sauce, Chen Miaoying took a big bite of toast and let out a satisfied sigh.
She chewed with her cheeks puffed out, then looked up at her father.
Today, Dad didn't chat with her or supervise her eating to make sure she didn't get her face dirty. Instead, he stared at his phone with a serious expression.
Chen Miaoying swallowed the bread and let out a long, serious sigh.
I wonder what Dad is looking at?
Thinking this, Chen Miaoying took another big bite of bread.
She devoured a slice of toast in no time, then picked up a tissue to wipe her mouth.
Aunt Zhang usually helps her with these things to make sure she looks like a beautiful little princess when she goes to kindergarten.
However, over the weekend, Chen Miaoying promised her father that she would take responsibility for her own personal hygiene.
After wiping her mouth clean, Chen Miaoying rested her chin on her hand and looked at her father across from her again.
Dad is still looking at his phone, he's been looking at it for a long time, and he doesn't talk to her.
She couldn't go to her mother either—her father said that her mother needed to rest and that she couldn't go upstairs to wake her up too early.
She's already a sensible little girl and shouldn't bother her parents.
But……
This is so boring!
After observing her father for a while, Chen Miaoying finally couldn't help but call out, "Dad!"
Chen Sulin looked up: "Hmm?"
Chen Miaoying: "Dad, what are you looking at?"
Chen Sulin said gently, "Dad is looking at the work report from his assistant."
Chen Miaoying: "Dad, was your work particularly difficult today?"
She remembered her father telling her that work is just like homework assigned by a kindergarten teacher.
Sometimes it's easy and quick to finish, but other times it's difficult and you have to take it slow to do it well.
Chen Sulin's tone was calm, yet patient enough: "It's alright, not difficult."
Chen Miaoying pouted: "Dad is lying."
A hint of surprise flashed across Chen Sulin's eyes.
Chen Miaoying said earnestly, "Dad, your brows were furrowed so deeply just now, and for so long. I've never seen you furrow your brows for so long before. And even though I've been watching you for so long, you didn't notice at all."
Normally, if she keeps staring at her father, he will notice it in no time.
Chen Sulin: "..."
After a two-second silence, the man put down his phone and went to his daughter's side.
"I'm sorry," Chen Sulin said. "Dad isn't working now, so I'll watch picture books with you, okay? After we finish reading, you can go wake Mom up."
Chen Miaoying blinked: "Okay then."
Chen Sulin: "Then you play with Anna for a while, and Dad will go pick out a picture book for you."
After comforting his daughter, the man went upstairs to get the picture book.
Chen Miaoying's picture books come in several types, including short stories suitable for bedtime reading and science books.
The former are kept in the closet of the children's room, while the latter is placed in his study.
Before reading picture books with Chen Miaoying, Chen Sulin would browse through them beforehand to ensure that the content was suitable for a five-year-old.
After picking out a book from the bookshelf, Chen Sulin picked up his phone.
The screen displayed what Assistant Zhou had just reported to him.
After receiving the picture from Zhao Yanzhou in the office yesterday, Chen Sulin gave the photo of the card with the words "Peace and Prosperity" written on it to his assistant and asked the assistant to find out its source as soon as possible.
Assistant Zhou acted quickly, reporting the results to him first thing this morning.
As Chen Sulin had predicted, the hidden pattern on the card was a snake, designed by a well-known pen brand based on this year's zodiac animal.
The four words in the photo were not what Meng Ran wrote to Zhao Yanzhou when they broke up years ago, but rather what she wrote in the last few days.
That pen brand has only three flagship stores in the entire northern part of the city, with the newest one, which opened at the beginning of the year, located in Mengzhao Tiandi.
Assistant Zhou called the flagship store and asked the store manager about the situation.
The brand needs to protect customer privacy, but out of respect for Hengyue Group, the store manager still said that a Ms. Meng had indeed recently ordered a fountain pen with engravings.
Assistant Zhou synchronized all the communication records with the store manager.
It's clear that the store manager didn't want to offend either Hengyue or the Zhao family; he left plenty of room for maneuver in his words, stopping short of making a point.
However, the implication was that the second young master of the Zhao family had personally visited the store for this Miss Meng.
Chen Sulin looked at the record sent by Assistant Zhou in his hand and briefly fell into reminiscence.
Back when he hadn't yet broken ties with Zhao Yanzhou, Zhao Yanzhou had come to his office the day after his twenty-fourth birthday to show off.
"Look, this is a gift from my girlfriend." Zhao Yanzhou placed a paperweight on his desk with a grin. "How about it, isn't it exquisite? You didn't get such a thoughtful gift for your birthday a few days ago, did you?"
The two were childhood friends, having known each other since they were young. They knew each other very well, but because of their vastly different personalities, they couldn't be said to have a very close relationship.
To show off the birthday gift his girlfriend gave him, Zhao Yanzhou made a special excuse to come to his office, which Chen Sulin found both infuriating and amusing.
How did he respond at the time?
He seemed to be frowning and telling Zhao Yanzhou to get out of there with his belongings, so as not to delay his meeting later.
...
Chen Sulin's fingers tightened unconsciously around his phone.
If he remembers correctly, next week is Zhao Yanzhou's thirty-first birthday.
Inside the study, a tall man stood by the window, the sunlight outside casting a half-light and half-shadow on his profile, his emotions unreadable in his eyes.
After a while, Chen Sulin turned off his phone screen, took the picture book and went downstairs.
.
Meng Ran woke up from her sleep, finished washing up, and just then there was a knock on the door.
Chen Miaoying appeared at the bedroom door on time and called for her mother to come downstairs.
Meng Ran rubbed her daughter's head and asked her what she had done that morning.
Chen Miaoying counted on her fingers: "I ate my favorite chocolate toast, played with the new toys that my mom bought for me with Anna, and read picture books with my dad."
Meng Ran smiled and asked, "Does Anna like the new toy?"
Chen Miaoying: "I love it! Anna loves the new dragonfly cat toy that Mom bought!"
Meng Ran hummed in agreement, then paused, startled.
She woke up last night already in Chen Sulin's arms, and didn't have time to take the shopping bags from the mall in the trunk into the room.
The clothes she bought, the toys she bought for Anna, and the birthday gift for Chen Sulin should all still be in the shopping bag.
"Honey," Meng Ran asked, "where did you get Anna's new toy from?"
Chen Miaoying was confused, but she still answered her mother's question seriously: "I asked my dad to get it for me."
Meng Ran was momentarily stunned.
Chen Miaoying: "Mom, what's wrong?"
Meng Ran shook her head: "It's nothing."
She didn't put the pen and cat toy together, but under the folded clothes. Logically, if Chen Sulin was just taking the toy, he shouldn't have seen it.
Before confirming, it's best not to tell Chan Miu-ying.
When I went downstairs, lunch wasn't ready yet.
Meng Ran checked the shopping bags. Apart from the bag containing toys being empty, the other shopping bag containing clothes was still flat and looked untouched.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
In Chan Miu-ying's world, keeping birthday surprises a secret is very important.
Fortunately, the gift wasn't discovered, otherwise Chan Miu-ying would have been disappointed.
Meng Ran carefully took the shopping bag back to her room and put the pen she was going to give away, along with its packaging, into the bedside table drawer.
The housekeeper won't touch the items in the drawers when she's cleaning, so she should be able to keep them from being discovered before Chen Sulin's birthday.
As she was about to go downstairs again, she ran into Chen Sulin, who was coming out of his room.
Meng Ran and he exchanged a glance, feeling as if they had forgotten something, but they couldn't quite recall it.
Chen Sulin glanced at the empty shopping bag in her hand.
Meng Ran had no experience hiding gifts, and inexplicably felt guilty as she clenched the bag.
She coughed and explained, "I just brought the clothes I bought yesterday back to my room, and I was about to give the bag to the housekeeper to pack."
Chen Sulin's gaze inadvertently swept over her clenched fingers, and he hummed in response.
"Want to go to Miaoying's physical education class this afternoon?"
Meng Ran: "Okay."
The two descended the stairs one after the other, with Chen Sulin walking in front, his pace slower than usual.
Meng Ran followed silently behind him.
Even now, she is not sure how far her relationship with Chen Sulin has progressed.
The day after each kiss, the two seemed to have returned to square one.
But there seemed to be a subtle difference: she no longer hesitated to accept his invitation, and when they reached the last step, he made a point of stopping to wait for her.
After lunch and a short rest, Chen Miaoying started urging her mother and father to change their clothes and go out.
Chen Miaoying is a very demanding child. Whether it's going to kindergarten or attending extracurricular classes, she absolutely does not allow herself to be late.
What's more, this is her favorite physical education class.
The three of them returned to the complex, and the teacher who greeted the parents at the entrance was the same one from last time.
The teacher was used to Meng Ran's appearance and waved to her warmly from a few meters away.
"We meet again, Miaoying's mom and dad," the teacher said with a smile. "You two have such a good relationship; you've come to accompany Miaoying to class together again this weekend."
Chen Miaoying obediently greeted the teacher, said goodbye to her mother and father, and rushed into the changing room as fast as she could.
Watching his daughter's figure disappear, Chen Sulin asked, "Would you like something to drink?"
Meng Ran remembered that Chen Sulin had bought her coffee last time, so she offered, "I'll buy it this time."
Relationships between people are based on give and take, and this applies to couples as well.
Meng Ran: "What would you like to drink? The same cold brew as last time?"
When Chen Sulin bought coffee last time, she made a point of remembering what he bought for her.
Chen Sulin: "What would you like to drink?"
Meng Ran: "I...haven't decided yet, I probably won't drink coffee."
She's not so keen on coffee, preferring juice or milk tea instead.
As for what to drink, you'll have to check which shops are downstairs.
Chen Sulin: "Then you decide."
Meng Ran: "..."
If she buys him a cup of full-sugar strawberry panna cotta, will he drink it?
Meng Ran swallowed back her inner complaints: "Okay, I'll buy whatever I think is best."
She had noticed Chen Sulin's eating habits; he wasn't picky about food and should be able to eat most drinks that weren't too sweet.
Looking through the glass into the classroom, Chen Miaoying had already quickly blended into the group of children, jumping up and down among the equipment.
Meng Ran went down two floors and saw two beverage shops next to the escalator.
After thinking for a moment, she took photos of the signs of the two stores and sent them to Jiang Yuqing.
Meng Ran: [Have you tried either of these two restaurants? Which one is better?]
Jiang Yuqing: [Image attached] I've had this before, and it tastes pretty good.
Meng Ran: [Any recommendations?]
Jiang Yuqing: [There's a kind called passion fruit pineapple or something, it's sweet and sour, it should suit your taste!]
Meng Ran: [What about the non-sweet ones? Any recommendations?]
Jiang Yuqing: [?]
Jiang Yuqing: [Did your tastes change after you lost your memory once?]
Meng Ran: [No, I bought it for someone else.]
Jiang Yuqing: [...]
Jiang Yuqing: [Your husband?]
Meng Ran: [Hmm.]
Jiang Yuqing: [Wow, I'm not having it! What makes this man so special that he expects my Ranran to buy him milk tea?]
Jiang Yuqing: [Oh, I forgot he gave you a black card.]
Jiang Yuqing: [That's fine, go ahead and buy it.]
Jiang Yuqing: [Oh right, I only like sweet drinks, just like you, so I can't help you, baby [shrug]]
Meng Ran was amused by Jiang Yuqing's dramatic reaction.
Meng Ran: [Are you home? I'll buy you a drink too.]
Jiang Yuqing replied without hesitation: 【Sure, I'll send you the address. I'll drink the one I just mentioned!】
Meng Ran: [OK]
First, Meng Ran ordered a takeout for Jiang Yuqing through the mini-program, and then she ordered the same thing for herself.
As for Chen Sulin, she chose a cup of oolong oat tea with 30% sugar.
I sat on a bench nearby, playing on my phone while waiting. About fifteen minutes later, the app showed that two drinks were ready.
After collecting the tea, Meng Ran carried the bag to the escalator.
Yu Guangli had been sitting near her, and a young man in a white T-shirt also stood up.
The top floors of the complex are mostly occupied by various leisure and experience stores, with dance studios and Pilates studios taking up the majority of the space, as well as a few hair salons and nail salons.
Most of the guests who come here go straight to their destination and take the elevator upstairs. At this moment, there are only Meng Ran and the boy behind her on the escalator.
After Meng Ran got off the escalator, she heard several quickened footsteps.
The guy in the white T-shirt walked around to her side and said, "Hello."
Meng Ran stopped in her tracks, a slight smile playing on her lips. "I don't need any memberships. I don't need dancing, gym memberships, haircuts, or manicures."
The boy cleared his throat and said apologetically, "No, no, I wanted to ask... could we exchange contact information?"
Seeing Meng Ran's surprise, the boy added, "I'm a student at L University, and I'm here to take jazz dance classes. Are you also a student at that dance studio over there? I think I've seen you in class before."
Aside from bringing Chen Miaoying to class, Meng Ran had never been to this area before, and she didn't know if the boy had simply mistaken her for someone else or if he was just making up an excuse to strike up a conversation.
The boy had a clean-cut appearance and spoke politely; there was nothing about him that was offensive.
Meng Ran smiled politely: "You must have mistaken me for someone else. I don't have classes here."
The boy smiled shyly and scratched his head: "Ah, sorry, sorry! Well... could you—"
Meng Ran smiled and said, "We won't exchange contact information anymore, I have a boyfriend."
After coming to Beicheng to study at university, she was still short of money, but at least she was able to dress herself neatly and presentably, unlike when she was in high school, when she always wore baggy, ill-fitting school uniforms and had bangs that covered her eyes.
So over the years of college, she had been approached by strangers quite a few times.
Gradually, Meng Ran realized that no matter what reason she used to reject someone, nothing was as convenient and quick as saying "I have a boyfriend."
Otherwise, if you use other reasons, there will always be guys who don't know when to stop and will continue to pester you.
Over time, Meng Ran got used to using this phrase to reject any men who tried to flirt with her.
Upon hearing this, the boy paused, seemingly wanting to say something, but after hesitating for a moment, he lowered his head and said, "...Okay, then I'll take my leave."
Meng Ran nodded and continued walking towards the fitness center with her milk tea in hand.
She thought Chen Sulin would be waiting for her in the lounge, but she bumped into him as soon as she arrived at the venue entrance.
Before she could express her surprise, Chen Sulin spoke first: "Why did it take so long?"
Meng Ran was speechless for a moment.
Perhaps there really are people in this world who are born with a way of saying things that are hard to hear, like the man in front of her.
Even if she knew he might just be genuinely concerned about her, otherwise he wouldn't have come out to wait at the door.
Meng Ran handed him the cup with three-tenths sugar: "There's a queue at the milk tea shop, so I waited a while."
Chen Sulin took the drink without looking at it: "Did you run into someone you know outside?"
Meng Ran turned around and looked at him in surprise.
Looking out from here, it does seem that you can vaguely see the corner where she stopped talking to the boy.
"It wasn't someone I knew." Meng Ran hesitated for a moment before telling the truth, "It was a guy who came up to me."
Chen Sulin: "Hmm."
Meng Ran: "..."
If he continued to ask, she would have nothing to hide and would definitely tell him that she had already rejected him.
But Chen Sulin didn't ask, and she didn't know whether she should explain or not.
After thinking for a moment, Meng Ran said, "The physical education class should have started a while ago, shall we go to the rest room?"
Chen Sulin: "Okay."
As the two walked into the venue, Meng Ran silently glanced at the man beside her a few more times.
Although Chen Sulin is usually not very talkative, I felt that he was unusually sparing with his words today.
Before lunch, Chen Miaoying secretly complained to Meng Ran that her father was very serious at work this morning and didn't say a word to her.
It's unclear which clueless subordinate or business partner angered this unpredictable man.
Meng Ran thought that she hadn't had a chance to say more than a few words to him today, so it couldn't have been her who upset him.
The two walked to the door of the lounge.
The lounge has a heavy glass door that is usually left open for parents to come and go, but it was closed by someone at this moment.
Chen Sulin opened the door, gesturing for her to go in first.
Although this person often speaks in a way that is unpleasant to hear, he is truly outstanding in this regard.
Meng Ran smiled at him and went inside first.
When Chen Sulin came in, the two found a less crowded spot to sit down.
In light of his gentlemanly behavior, Meng Ran decided to reciprocate and took the initiative to start the conversation.
“That guy probably mistook me for someone else. He said he’d seen me in the dance studio,” she said. “I told him I have a boyfriend and I didn’t have his contact information.”
Chen Sulin didn't reply, his gaze fixed on her hands.
Meng Ran thought she had gotten something on her hands when she picked up the milk tea, so she raised her hand to check: "What's wrong?"
Chen Sulin: "Boyfriend?"
Meng Ran was taken aback.
Seeing the metallic sheen on the man's left ring finger, she belatedly realized—
When he looks at her hand, is he looking at where the wedding ring should have been?
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