Shen Shixun didn't want her to talk nonsense with the people on the construction site, but the two meetings they had in one day were enough to show that he and Xiang Nanzhi had another kind of relationship.
He didn't need to give anyone an explanation, nor did he like people looking at his woman with strange eyes.
Holding her hand, they walked out together. The workers gradually finished their shifts and left. Xiang Nanzhi let go of his hand. "You get in the car first. I have something to tell you."
What do these people on the construction site think of her? Shen Shixun is stupid; he doesn't even know how to explain.
She couldn't hold back any longer and had to say it: "Was that person your friend?"
"yes."
"Does he have some misunderstanding about our relationship?"
"It should be."
He seemed completely unconcerned about it; the man was still sweating, and he deliberately kept his back away from her seat, afraid of getting it dirty.
"If there's nothing else, just tell me over the phone next time. You don't need to come all the way here."
Xiang Nanzhi took a deep breath. "If you don't explain, aren't you afraid people will overthink things?"
"What do you mean by overthinking?"
"Their expressions just now, and the tone of your friend's voice when he spoke to me, made it seem like... like I was a pervert who enjoyed torturing you."
Xiang Nanzhi deliberately didn't spell it out clearly, but adults understand what he meant.
Do you find pleasure in torturing me?
"Of course not."
Before, I was just angry, angry at his stubbornness, and all I wanted to do was teach him a lesson, nothing more.
"Then why explain?"
He didn't care about any of that, nor did he care what others said.
"This isn't good for you. They'll think about you, think about you, think about you..."
Xiang Nan stammered, unable to get anything out for a long time, and finally sighed without saying anything. "Never mind, I'll take you to eat first. What do you want to eat?"
She had been waiting for him all afternoon and was hungry; her stomach was growling. She hadn't eaten well at noon because he had upset her, so it was time for her to replenish her nutrition.
"Anything is fine."
"Any good food options around here?"
"Yes, there is a dumpling restaurant."
"Where is it? Show me the way."
Following Shen Shixun's instructions, Xiang Nan drove all the way to the entrance of the dumpling restaurant.
Located near the construction site, behind which are several old buildings with unpainted exterior walls, this restaurant is frequented mostly by workers. They arrive during peak business hours and have to share tables.
Shen Shixun ordered a plate of dumplings, and Xiang Nanzhi, who had never eaten in a place like this before, ordered the same plate as him.
The man ate one dumpling after another, quickly finishing the plate. Xiang Nanzhi ate a few, but couldn't eat anymore.
The dumpling restaurant was swarming with flies and reeked of men's sweat. Everyone was eating and chatting, some smoking, some laughing loudly. She felt like the spittle from the man across from her was flying onto her plate.
Shen Shixun didn't think anything was wrong. Seeing that she hadn't finished a plate of dumplings, he asked, "Can't you finish?"
"I can't eat anymore, do you want some?"
She handed him the plate, and Shen Shixun quickly finished his plate as well.
Worried that she would get hungry if she didn't eat, I went to the dumpling restaurant and got a menu. "Take a look and see what you'd like to eat?"
"I'm full, and I wasn't really hungry to begin with."
Hearing her say that, Shen Shixun didn't insist.
Leaving the dumpling restaurant, she finally got rid of those strange smells; if she had stayed any longer, she really would have thrown up. Xiang Nanzhi clutched her chest and took a deep breath.
"Where do you live? Let me take you home."
This was not the kind of meal she had imagined. She imagined eating while chatting casually, not sitting at a shared table with others in this crowded place, surrounded by constant noise that gave her a headache.
"It's right behind here."
"dormitory?"
"Um."
"Why don't you rent a place to live?"
"I haven't thought about it."
Shen Shixun felt that it was lively with more people, and that men wouldn't have so many complicated relationships, plus it would save on rent, but Xiang Nanzhi couldn't understand it.
She wanted to improve Shen Shixun's quality of life, but she couldn't easily say it and hurt his pride. "Have you ever thought about renting a place and living alone? It might be more convenient if we lived together."
Shen Shixun didn't say anything, but touched the cigarette in his hand.
"I was just saying, you don't need to take it too seriously, it's your life."
After watching the woman leave, Shen Shixun lit a cigarette and stood under a tree outside the dumpling restaurant for a while.
Back in the dormitory, the men were already in an uproar.
The dormitory fell silent upon hearing the door open. Without anyone saying a word, Shen Shixun sensed that something was wrong.
As usual, he took off his clothes and went into the public bathroom to shower.
There was another commotion outside. "Great figure, strong, and good-looking, no wonder rich women like him."
"With a face like that, he could easily find a job at a club and earn more than he would on a construction site..."
"It's all about youth. Once you're no longer young and your energy is gone, these women will turn on you faster than you can turn the pages of a book."
Yang He had remained silent, but hearing everyone still talking, he couldn't help but speak up, "Do you have any evidence? What nonsense are you spouting? You see a woman come looking for him and you start making up all sorts of stories. Is there any basis for that?"
"What would such a wealthy woman want from him?"
"He was beaten so often before, it must have been because he upset the women during sex. Some women are like that, they like to abuse strong and healthy men, with whips, belts..."
"Although my family is not rich, I have never thought of using my body to be a woman's plaything."
"Me too, I'm not fighting for a steamed bun, I'm fighting for my pride."
"Either he pays off his debts with his body to please women, or he sleeps with women for money..."
"you……"
The bathroom door was suddenly pushed open, and Shen Shixun came out of the bathroom wearing shorts and a towel around his neck. He sat down in his seat, pretending that he hadn't heard anything.
Yang He glanced at him and sighed deeply.
The man lay on his bed; the dormitory was unusually quiet.
"These wealthy women nowadays will do anything to seek thrills; they're desperately thirsty."
The others didn't respond, but they chuckled a few times.
The man suddenly sat up in bed, walked to the person who had spoken, who was smoking a cigarette. He swung his arm and pulled the person off the upper bunk, throwing him heavily to the ground.
"What are you doing? What are you doing?"
Shen Shixun, wearing a pair of dark blue slippers, tucked them into the man's back. Before the man could even start cursing, he kicked him again.
Without any explanation or clarification, he kicked and kicked.
"Sehun, we're all brothers, don't take it too seriously."
"That's right, we're all brothers, we were just joking around."
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