Chapter 27. Contract Couple
It started to rain heavily near the early morning, and the Municipal Meteorological Bureau issued a yellow warning, advocating people to work from home and not go out unless necessary.
There seem to be more people watching the fun online than usual.
The video of Jia Yingjun beating someone in a nightclub first became a hot topic in the city. Later, some sharp-eyed and enthusiastic people pointed out that the person wearing sweet and sexy clothes in the video was the boss of Hanmei. Many marketing accounts reposted it, and the entry #Hanmei boss is a cross-dresser in private# directly became a hot search.
Ruan Tang sat in front of the store, looking up at the rain. Feng Xue came over with her cell phone and sat down on the chair next to her.
Seeing his frown finally relax slightly, Ruan Tang sighed and said, "I told him he'd be fine. Maybe he could even use this wave of public opinion to launch some kind of marketing event. The boss himself is a senior user, how cool is that, just like that internet celebrity Sister J. Tsk, isn't this idea awesome? If the coffee shop doesn't survive, I'd be a good PR person, right?"
Feng Xue thought for a while and said: I have had some contact with entrepreneurs in the public relations industry before. They have relatively high requirements for knowledge reserves, crisis response capabilities, and personal connections. If you want to switch to public relations, you still have to consider it carefully.
Ruan Tang almost fainted. She kept reminding herself that Feng Xue was not the protagonist in a romance novel, and she had no right to be angry. She changed the subject in time and asked: How is Jiahao?
Feng Xue sighed: He just had some minor skin injuries, it's nothing serious, I'm a little worried about Jiang Li.
Ruan Tang just said "Oh" lightly, then turned around and looked seriously at the rainwater flowing down from the eaves.
"What's wrong with you? Are you unhappy?"
"What's wrong with you" and "What's wrong with you again" are just one word apart, but she suddenly feels that there is such a difference.
She is not someone who likes to show her negative emotions. She has always earnestly practiced what those emotional mentors said about providing emotional value to men, so that later when she slightly reveals her true emotions, the other party will most likely ask impatiently: What's wrong with you?
"I," Ruan Tang paused, "don't like rainy days."
"Me too."
As he said this, he put his hands behind his head, stretched his legs and leaned back in the chair, and turned his head to look at Ruan Tang. Next to her was a cup of cold coffee, with a little white milk foam still on the corner of her mouth. He inexplicably remembered the short and quick kiss from the night before, and his thoughts began to wander unconsciously, wondering which tasted better, the cocktail or the latte.
Before he could come to any conclusion, his eyes unexpectedly met hers. Feng Xue hurriedly withdrew her gaze, looked at the rain outside the window, and agreed: "But it's also good that I don't have to go out to deliver the goods today."
Ruan Tang didn't intend to really talk to Feng Xue at first.
They had already had too many interactions beyond business, and she didn't want to create any more unnecessary complications. But Feng Xue's question was like a drop of rain, crashing through Ruan Tang's self-proclaimed impenetrable defenses.
"Can you do me a favor?" Ruan Tang asked courageously.
Feng Xue nodded and asked: What?
At 5:30 this morning, Ruan Tang had just taken off her makeup and fell asleep when she was woken up by her mother's phone call. Ruan Tang frowned and asked why she got up so early in the morning?
Mom said excitedly: Tangtang, Mom asked someone to introduce a boy to me. He also works in Beijing, was born in 1985, and said he works at the State Grid. He is 1.8 meters tall and a graduate student. Although he is a little older than you, it is a good age for a boy. Moreover, he said that he doesn't mind that you don't have a job and is willing to meet you and get to know you.
Don’t dislike it???
Ruan Tang suddenly felt her temples throb twice, and she sneered: Then I should really thank him in person for considering me, a slow-moving commodity.
In fact, Ruan Tang could guess what kind of person he was without even meeting him. Men like him were a dime a dozen on the blind date market. The aura of a test-taker from their student days carried over into middle age, which was even more ridiculous than listing a Communist Youth League member as a political affiliation in a company job application at age 25 or 26. She claimed to respect her partner and support their independence as a woman, but in reality, she was just looking for someone to help pay the mortgage.
"I finally asked someone to ask this, what's your attitude?" Mom heard her harsh words and quickly became dissatisfied. "Forget it, I'm going to Beijing this weekend and I'll go with you to meet this boy."
"I have a boyfriend! We're planning to get married." Ruan Tang was still thinking, but when she heard these words come out of her mouth, she was stunned.
My mother was skeptical: "Really? Where are you from? How old are you? What do you do?"
Ruan Tang took a deep breath, embellished Feng Xue's resume and said: He is from Beijing, in his thirties, works in the financial industry, and only makes a few million a year.
"Okay, if you think he's suitable, then bring him back to me so I can put him at ease. I just have something to tell you." Mom was happy at first, but then she sighed and added firmly, "If you don't bring someone home this week, I'll go to Beijing and you can come with me to meet him."
"Ruan Tang?" Feng Xue saw that she was distracted and waved his hand in front of her.
Ruan Tang turned her head and looked at him and asked: Can you pretend to be my boyfriend and go back to my hometown with me to meet my mother?
"Pretend?" His expression was serious, as if he had heard someone ask him to rob a bank together.
She had almost never been rejected in person by a man, and she couldn't help feeling embarrassed for a moment, and tried to be nonchalant and joked: Do you want to take it seriously?
Feng Xue looked embarrassed: Ruan Tang, I don't want to lie about this kind of thing, and if you lie once, you will have to make up countless lies to cover it up. Look at Yingjun, he forced Jiahao and I to go on blind dates for him every day to fool his mother, but in the end he was exposed.
"Forget it, I'll ask someone else." Her tone was cheerful, without any displeasure in her voice. She stood up with the coffee cup and walked behind the counter to wash the cup.
The rain stopped in the evening. Jiang Li called Feng Xue and said that she could not contact Wu Jiahao. She was so anxious that she almost cried. Feng Xue called him using her own cell phone and Ruan Tang's cell phone, but both were turned off. He told Ruan Tang that the store would be closed as usual and there was no need to wait for him, and then left in a hurry.
When he came back, it was completely dark. Two boys dressed as students ordered two cups of coffee and sat in the shop for more than three hours. Ruan Tang walked up to them and reminded them with a smile: The coffee shop is about to close.
One of the boys asked: Isn’t it open at night too?
"The tavern is open at night, but the owner is busy with personal matters and may not come today." Ruan Tang crossed her arms and watched the two people exchange glances.
At this time Feng Xue pushed the door open. Ruan Tang glanced at the door, suddenly put on a smile, raised her voice and asked gently: You don’t have a boyfriend, you want our WeChat, right?
The two were stunned at first, and the other boy with a flat head quickly nodded vigorously and picked up his phone.
Ruan Tang caught a glimpse of Feng Xue walking into the kitchen, seemingly not noticing their conversation at all, and she couldn't help but grit her teeth.
She took out her cell phone from her pocket and swiped it a few times, then said: But I usually don’t add guests to my personal WeChat, sorry, you can follow my Xiaohongshu, and if you need to make a reservation in the future, just send me a private message.
After the other party paid attention, Ruan Tang smiled with her eyes curved and said: In the future, please bring more classmates to check in. Today I will give you two bottles of beer and two dishes. Wait a moment.
After she finished speaking, before either of them could refuse, she turned around and strode into the kitchen, handing the menu to Feng Xue.
He looked down at the list, said nothing, turned around and started preparing the ingredients and starting the fire.
Seeing his cold face, Ruan Tang went forward silently to help wash the vegetables.
When Feng Xue turned his back to her, he suddenly said: In the future, you don't have to stay to help at night unless there is a special situation. Go back first.
"Is Jiahao okay?" Ruan Tang asked, looking at his back. He didn't say anything, just lowered his head and cooked.
Ruan Tang muttered in dissatisfaction: You are crazy... I didn't offend you.
She pursed her lips and said, "I'll leave after I finish serving the dishes." As she spoke, she walked over to Feng Xue with the plate. He was just about to pour oil from a small saucer into the pot when the hot oil suddenly splashed, leaving a trail of red marks on Ruan Tang's bare arms.
"Ah!" She screamed, and her grip loosened as the plate fell to the ground and broke into pieces.
Feng Xue quickly turned off the fire, put down the spatula and came over to check, apologizing repeatedly: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I mistook water starch for wine.
When Ruan Tang raised her head again, her eyes were already filled with tears.
When Feng Xue finished cooking the dishes and sent them out, she was still sitting there crying.
As far as he could remember, this wasn't the first time he saw her cry, but Feng Xue still felt helpless and didn't know what to do.
He took out the burn ointment, squatted in front of her and treated it carefully for her, whispering: Don't stand so close next time, and aren't you afraid that the fumes will hurt your skin?
Ruan Tang felt wronged: Didn’t I want to help you?! And you’re blaming me?
He quickly shook his head: I don’t blame you, it’s my fault, I was distracted just now.
"This is over," Ruan Tang said, sitting on a small stool, hunched over and hugging her knees, curled up into a small ball. "My mom is coming to Beijing. When she sees me like this, guarding this small shop all day and being so miserable, I don't know how she'll nag me. She'll definitely force me to go on a blind date with that guy."
Feng Xue was silent for a moment, then asked, "You asked me to... pretend to be your boyfriend. Do you not want to go on blind dates? But haven't you been on blind dates all the time?"
"Only I know what I want. I just don't want to make my mother worry about me unnecessarily." She suddenly stopped crying, stiffened her neck and said stubbornly.
He lowered his eyes and thought for a while, then said: Then I'll go with you.
Ruan Tang was busy receiving takeout orders all day on Friday. When Feng Xue came to the store in the evening, the counter was already piled high with various gift boxes.
"Oh, I thought I was on a return tour bus for senior citizens." Feng Xue sighed as he looked down at the Beijing Eight Desserts, Beijing Roast Duck and other specialties.
Ruan Tang was checking things off on the memo while saying, “This is the first time I’m bringing my boyfriend home, and all my aunts, uncles, and neighbors are watching. I have to make my mom proud.”
After being alone outside for so many years, this was the first time she brought her boyfriend home. She had to pay for everything herself, and her boyfriend was fake. Ruan Tang sighed, but didn't care about being sad. She took out an Armani shopping bag from the pile of things and handed it to Feng Xue, saying: This is for you, you can wear this tomorrow.
He took it and took a look into the bag, then said: It’s not convenient for me to ride a bike wearing this. Oh, by the way, how are you going to carry so many things?
Ruan Tang was stunned and asked: Are you planning to... take me back on a motorcycle?
Seeing Feng Xue nodded, she felt the blood rushing to her head and smiled patiently: Brother, the motorcycle does look cool, but... you can't let me sit behind you and carry these gifts I bought for my mother all the way back to my hometown with both hands, right?
Feng Xue pondered for a moment and said: Then I will buy a high-speed rail ticket.
Ruan Tang paced around the gift boxes, making two circles. Then, as if suddenly having an idea, she said, "I've seen Jia Yingjun drive a lot of cars. Why don't I ask him to borrow one?" Then, she continued, playing a pitiful game: "I'm drifting alone in Beijing. My mom already thinks I'm hungry and cold all day. I bring these things to reassure her." "And if we squeeze into a train, she'll definitely think we're having a rough time. Then she'll have to ask me to go on a blind date..."
She knew that Feng Xue would definitely not let her go out to borrow a car.
Early in the morning on the weekend, Feng Xue drove Jia Yingjun's Aston Martin and stopped in front of the tavern.
He was wearing a suit and he moved the gift boxes and fruits that Ruan Tang had bought into the trunk with his hands and feet. Ruan Tang followed and moved two boxes. Feng Xue saw that her skirt was too short and it was inconvenient for her to get in the car first.
When Feng Xue bent down to move the goods, Ruan Tang suddenly cried out in surprise. He almost slipped and dropped a heavy box of bird's nests in glass jars.
She rushed over, pulled open Feng Xue's collar, and asked in a trembling voice: Did you take off the label?
He looked confused: How can I wear it without taking it off?
"Who told you to tear it down?!" Ruan Tang was almost crying. With this cut, he had cut off the coffee shop's turnover for half a month. She stopped talking and turned around angrily to get into the car.
After a while, Ruan Tang seemed to have forgotten about losing thousands of dollars. She sat in the passenger seat and looked for different angles, each of which inadvertently revealed the car logo on the steering wheel.
While she was editing the picture, she suddenly received a payment message from Alipay.
Feng Xue transferred five thousand yuan to her.
He opened the car door and got in, saying: I haven't bought clothes in a long time, and the clothes you picked are quite suitable.
Ruan Tang curled her lips, took out a wet wipe from her bag and handed it to him to wipe his sweat: Next time you buy clothes, you can ask me to be your buyer, for free.
When they drove to Ruan Tang's house, it was already past lunch time, the hottest time of the day. Ruan Tang's mother heard her voice message saying that they were almost there, so she was waiting downstairs early.
Seeing her sunburned face turn slightly red, Ruan Tang felt very uncomfortable and took her arm and complained: Why did you come down and stand here? Aren't you afraid of getting heatstroke?
"Summer is over, why are you suffering from heatstroke? Isn't this the first time you meet your boyfriend? You can't wait upstairs." Ruan Tang's mother was not tall originally, and she seemed to have become even shorter as she grew older. She was dark and thin, with all the fat on her body growing around her waist. She looked uncoordinated, like a spinning top.
Feng Xuehou Ruan Tang stepped out of the car, bowed respectfully to Ruan Tang's mother, and said: Hello, Auntie, my name is Feng Xue, Feng with two water drops, and Xue for snow.
Ruan Tang's mother looked him up and down, nodding and saying hello, hello, and seemed to be extremely satisfied with his appearance.
Seeing her mother's beaming face, Ruan Tang suddenly felt a surge of joy, as if her Ren and Du meridians had been opened. Growing up, worry and despair had often manifested themselves in wrinkles on her mother's face. As she grew older, the wrinkles deepened, and Ruan Tang couldn't even remember what her face looked like without them. Those wrinkles had felt like shackles weighing down her, but today, when her mother smiled, the weight of the shackles seemed to lift, and she felt a sense of relief.
"Then you move the things upstairs first, we'll watch downstairs. It's the sixth floor. Thank you for your hard work, dear." Ruan Tang gave orders in a coquettish voice, trying her best to play the role of a little woman in love, but she was already very familiar with this kind of role.
Ruan Tang's mother pulled Feng Xue away and stopped him from doing the work, wanting to move the things herself. Ruan Tang stopped her, pulled her to the front of the car, and said: You spoil him like this, what if he asks me to do all the work in the future?
"I've almost spoiled you. Xiao Feng has worked so hard. You should learn to be considerate of her and stop acting like a spoiled little girl." The mother quickly stood on the side of her "future son-in-law" and wanted to send her to a women's ethics class to teach her a lesson.
"It's okay, Auntie, I can do it. You talk to Ruan Tang first." Feng Xue said, carrying five boxes of pastries and going upstairs.
Aunt Zhang from next door came downstairs carrying a bag of trash. Seeing Ruan Tang, she rushed over without even bothering to throw away the trash and asked, "Hey, Tang Tang, are you back? You know you're back to honor your mom, bringing so many things!"
Ruan Tang's mother smiled and waved her hand, saying: She only comes back once or twice a year. It's a good thing she didn't forget her mother.
Aunt Zhang craned her neck to examine the car beside the mother and daughter. She lowered her voice and leaned closer to Ruan Tang's mother to gossip, "Is that young man who just got in your son-in-law? He's a handsome man, quite good."
Ruan Tang's mother was reserved: Oh, we haven't even started yet.
Aunt Zhang rolled her eyes and said with a sigh: He's already married, it's only a matter of time. Hey, the conditions look good, just wait to enjoy the good life in the future. This car looks good too. You see, the society is developing really well now. This car is a high-end brand and looks very good. My son-in-law bought an Audi a few days ago.
Ruan Tang pulled her mother aside and took a step forward, smiling, "Auntie, this brand is Aston Martin. Tell your son-in-law to consider it next time he buys a new car. It's not expensive, maybe two or three million. My boyfriend doesn't usually drive it..."
Before she could finish her words, seeing Aunt Zhang's smile gradually fading on her face, Ruan Tang's mother pinched her arm and continued: That's right, you usually can't bear to buy such an expensive car.
Aunt Zhang changed the subject and said mysteriously: Well, a car is just a means of transportation, there is no need to buy one that is too expensive. People say on the Internet that cars depreciate, it is better to buy a house. By the way, Tangtang’s mom, is Lao Li here too today?
"What Old Li?" Ruan Tang looked at her mother and asked.
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