Chapter 83
Jiang Chen's sudden arrival surprised both Jin Chuwan and Li Xing'en, but when they saw Ran Xian get up to greet him warmly, they immediately understood.
It seems he's the one who brought the people here.
Jin Chuwan was a little confused, but she still moved a seat for Jiang Chen.
"Do you two have something to discuss later?"
When Jiang Chen heard Jin Chuwan's question, he pointed at Ran Xian.
"No, he said he'd treat me to dinner, so I came."
No sooner had Jiang Chen finished speaking than a sneer came from the dinner table.
This time it's Lee Sung-eun.
He looked at Ran Xian and Jiang Chen, who were sitting calmly, with amusement. The anger he had just suppressed was now rising again.
"Young Master Ran certainly knows how to treat people..."
Ran Xian was serving food to Jin Chuwan, and he barely paid any attention to Li Xing'en's sarcasm.
"It's just a meal, do you have to be so stingy? If it's really too much, I'll just put it on my tab."
As the second young master of the Ran family, would he care about such a small amount of money?
He only cared that he couldn't let Jin Chuwan and Li Xing'en be alone together later. This Li Xing'en was really too difficult to deal with. She already had a boyfriend, but she didn't know any better. Her persistent and clingy attitude was annoying.
He preferred to have Jiang Chen accompany Jin Chuwan, at least he trusted Jiang Chen's character a little more.
After the last dish was served, the door to the private room was closed again.
Although the atmosphere between Ran Xian and Li Xing'en wasn't exactly tense, Jiang Chen could tell that they didn't get along. He smiled faintly, then picked up his tea and took a sip, not joining in their back-and-forth.
He came here simply to see Kim Cho-wan.
After all, they had hardly been in contact since that day.
Jiang Chen rested his chin on his hand and looked at Jin Chuwan sitting next to him. Perhaps because she was in a hurry, she suddenly coughed while eating.
"Slow down..."
Jiang Chen muttered helplessly, "She's always like this, easily influenced by everything around her."
"Let them argue if they want to. Just focus on your meal and ignore them."
As Jiang Chen spoke, he handed the water glass beside him to Jin Chuwan and gently patted her back with his other hand.
“I’ve said it before, you need to learn to be a little selfish. Don’t always think that they’re arguing because of you. You should think that even if you’re not there, they’ll still be like this. Let them fight if they want to. If you’re interested, watch. If you’re not, just tell them to get lost.”
Jiang Chen's voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the enclosed room.
"No matter what, you're my childhood sweetheart, and those two aren't worthy of making things difficult for you..."
The two, who had been exchanging words, suddenly fell silent because of Jiang Chen's words.
Ran Xian shifted his gaze from Li Xing'en to Jiang Chen, adjusting his glasses and giving him a once-over.
He never imagined that Jiang Chen would teach Jin Chuwan in this way.
But how should I put it, he had nothing to refute.
but.
"We're not worthy, and neither are you... Don't talk like you're so great."
Ran Xian's rebuttal did not seem to attract Jiang Chen's attention; he simply rested his chin on his hand and quietly looked at Jin Chuwan.
Li Xing'en remained silent. He wasn't one to engage in verbal sparring, and now, more than Jiang Chen, he was curious about Jin Chuwan's reaction.
The boy's smile remained gentle and pleasant as he twirled the soup spoon in his bowl with his slender fingers.
"...So, is Auntie going to tell me to get out now?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ran Xian's face lit up with anticipation.
But Kim Cho-wan did not respond to his expectations.
At this moment, she only felt a faint pressure coming down on her. She didn't feel she had the right to tell anyone to get lost. She only felt that Jiang Chen was turning his anger on her.
So at this moment, she frowned, revealing a hint of dissatisfaction.
As the male lead, he is arrogant and aloof; he doesn't need to care about anyone or anything, but she is different.
She's just a nobody.
"Please stop teasing me..."
Jin Chuwan felt somewhat exhausted, and she began to regret coming out.
As she spoke, she lowered her head and poked at the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks.
"I just want to eat in peace and quiet."
As Jiang Chen heard Jin Chuwan's weak voice, a smile flashed in his dark eyes.
He rested his chin on his hand and looked at Jin Chuwan. "But if you continue to indulge them like this, they will only go further in the future. Right now they are just bickering in front of you, but what if they do something even worse in the future?"
Jiang Chen spoke slowly. Since coming of age, he has become increasingly mature, but also more unpredictable than before.
His eyes held a deep smile, but there seemed to be something else mixed in with the smile.
Jin Chuwan's gaze swept over the people in front of her, and she opened her mouth but couldn't say a word.
Jiang Chen's words suddenly created an eerie atmosphere in the room, and some unspoken secrets were laid bare on the table, catching Jin Chuwan off guard.
But at that moment, everyone else at the table showed expressions of interest.
They also wanted to know Kim Cho-man's answer.
So even though there was unease in Jin Chuwan's eyes, Ran Xian and Li Xing'en tacitly chose to ignore it.
"...Then what do you mean by 'excessive'?"
Jin Chuwan's voice was calm as she met Jiang Chen's gaze, a hint of confusion flickering in her light-colored eyes.
All three of them stared at Jin Chuwan.
Jiang Chen didn't rush to answer, but glanced at Li Xing'en across from him as if he were not there. Their eyes met, and they smiled very faintly at almost the same time.
Jin Chuwan didn't notice any of this, but Ran Xian seemed to suddenly understand something.
He rarely took the initiative to learn about family matters, but he had always been paying attention to the stocks of various companies.
Thinking of this, Ran Xian suddenly stopped smiling.
He slowly frowned, a scrutinizing look appearing in his eyes.
In theory, he didn't think Jiang Chen or Li Xing'en could really get involved in the family's affairs right now, but the signals they were giving were very bad.
It's normal to like someone, but it's dangerous to become hostile towards each other or even secretly fight over someone.
Ran Xian frowned and looked at Jin Chuwan.
He didn't care whether Jiang Chen or Li Xing'en lived or died; he just felt that if the two of them were so persistent with Jin Chuwan, no matter who she chose in the future, the other person would probably hold a grudge against her.
Thinking it over, Ran Xian picked up the cup next to him, took a quick sip, and then slammed it heavily on the table.
"Jiang Chen, I invited you to dinner, can you please not make the atmosphere at the table so heavy?"
Ran Xian sounded a little impatient. His phone had already rang once, and although he had hung up, he figured he would get another call later.
"...Is it getting heavy?" Jiang Chen chuckled lightly, then casually asked, "When you two were arguing, you didn't think about the atmosphere at the dinner table. Why did you start considering it as soon as I arrived?"
As Jiang Chen spoke, he stretched his legs, his dark eyes always carrying a subtle sense of pressure.
"Can't you stop being so hypocritical?"
At this point, Jin Chuwan could no longer eat.
She knew that the current confrontation between the three people was probably because of her. She started to think about running away, but she also knew that running away would not solve the problem. As long as she was in S City, as long as they would come looking for her, there would be similar disputes in the future. Did she have to run away every time?
Jin Chuwan pressed her temples, her face showing signs of anxiety.
"So what if I have double standards?"
Ran Xian's voice was also somewhat cold.
Logically, he should have been an outsider, but whether as Jin Chuwan's friend or as her nominal boyfriend, he couldn't tolerate Jiang Chen's aggressive behavior.
"Since they're already taken, stop thinking about them and stop acting so high and mighty. Do you all think that being shameless will make you more attractive?"
Ran Xian bluntly pointed it out, but Li Xing'en and Jiang Chen laughed together after hearing it.
The laughter wasn't loud, but it carried a blatant mockery.
That innate arrogance is so obvious that it's almost effortless to make people feel it.
This infuriated Jin Chuwan.
She couldn't take it anymore and pushed the chair away, standing up.
Her gaze shifted from Li Xing'en to Jiang Chen.
"You were the one who said you wouldn't force me, but you're the one who let me make my own choice!"
Jin Chuwan's voice trembled slightly, partly from anger, and partly because she was really bad at arguing, and she was also concerned about the two main characters' identities, so she was vaguely afraid.
Instinctively, she grabbed Ran Xian's sleeve.
“Now that I’ve made my choice, you’re all relentlessly pursuing me, targeting me alone, and now you’re ganging up on Ran Xian as well…”
Jin Chuwan opened her mouth, wanting to curse, but didn't dare, and finally managed to utter a single sentence.
"Aren't you going too far...?"
Ran Xian suddenly realized that Jin Chuwan was standing up for him out of a desire to protect him. He twitched his fingertips, feeling somewhat uneasy and having a strange feeling he couldn't quite put his finger on.
Just then, the phone in his pocket vibrated again. Ran Xian frowned, but caught a glimpse of Jin Chuwan's fingers out of the corner of his eye.
She twisted his sleeves tightly; it was clear she was nervous.
For some reason, Ran Xian's chest suddenly softened. He subtly hung up the phone, then took Jin Chuwan's hand and stood up together.
He reached out and patted Jin Chuwan's head, then pulled her into his arms.
"Never mind, don't be angry. The food here isn't good. Let's go somewhere else."
As Ran Xian spoke, he lowered his head and kissed Jin Chuwan hard on the head.
The kiss was loud and seemed unusually jarring in the large private room. Li Xing'en and Jiang Chen's eyes darkened, but this time they didn't say anything.
After all, Kim Chuwan was already angry, and besides, teaching someone a lesson doesn't necessarily have to be done openly.
Jiang Chen smiled with his head down. He had acted impulsively today, but he didn't regret it. He liked Jin Chuwan openly and honestly, and it was only natural for him to dislike his rival. It was also reasonable for Jin Chuwan to protect Ran Xian.
None of these matters.
The important thing is that they grew up together and have such a long-standing relationship that it will never be completely severed because of Ran Xian.
Just coax her and she'll be fine.
Anyway, she's easily swayed.
Jiang Chen's gaze was indifferent, but as the two people beside him were about to leave, he suddenly reached out his hand.
He grabbed Kim Cho-wan, but quickly let go.
“It was my fault, but I didn’t mean to force you.” He looked at Jin Chuwan, the smile on his face gradually fading. “But you clearly know my feelings for you, yet you expect me to accept them calmly and without any reservations. Isn’t that a bit too harsh?”
Jin Chuwan glanced back at Jiang Chen. Even as he spoke such poignant words, his expression remained calm and aloof. His dark eyes seemed to hold both emotion and a complete lack of ulterior motives, leaving her with a sense of confusion.
She let out a soft sigh, said nothing, and silently left the restaurant with Ran Xian.
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