Chapter 77: The wife wants to sleep in the same room as the husband...
Chapter 77
Perhaps Jin Ran's confusion was too obvious, easily conveyed even through the colorful lights. The boy was slightly disappointed, but still took the initiative to say, "Last time at the Yushan Hotel, we had a buffet breakfast together."
Jin Ran remembered, it was that particularly outgoing male college student: "What a coincidence, what are you doing here?"
“My hometown is here.” The boy scratched his nose shyly. “Um, are you alone? Why don’t you come and hang out with us? The bar will open the dance floor later.”
He pointed in a direction, and looking in that direction, we saw several young people sitting at the bar, laughing and joking as they looked this way.
If Jin Ran had come out alone, she might have agreed, but now: "Sorry, I can't dance, you guys have fun."
The boy didn't give up: "Actually, I don't particularly like dancing either. How about I go somewhere else with you..."
Before she could finish speaking, a hand suddenly reached out from the side, naturally resting on Jin Ran's shoulder, and then pulled her into an embrace.
"No need, I'll keep my wife company myself."
Jiang Mingxu glanced over indifferently. He leaned back casually on the sofa, his shirt unbuttoned at the top four buttons, revealing half of his chest. His dark eyes stared at the boy, exuding a strong sense of pressure.
The boy froze on the spot.
Ever since their last meeting at the hotel, he had been thinking about her constantly. The moment he saw Jin Ran just now, he even wondered if he was drunk, because all he could see was Jin Ran, and he didn't even notice Jiang Mingxu sitting in the dark.
Jin Ran's expression was somewhat strange, even intrigued. Was this man... jealous?
However, now was clearly not the time to dwell on these things. She suppressed her thoughts and looked at the boy opposite her.
If she hadn't noticed before, she could now guess what the other person was thinking. In that case, she definitely needed to keep her distance.
So, feigning ignorance, she politely introduced him: "This is my husband. We're leaving soon. Let's play together again next time."
Upon hearing this, the boy's last hope vanished, and he walked away dejectedly like a punctured balloon.
Jin Ran breathed a sigh of relief, but as soon as she turned around, her wrist was suddenly grabbed by a force.
Jiang Mingxu's lips had already pressed down.
The music on the dance floor switched to a languid blues tune, the drumbeats deep and heavy, and no one noticed this dimly lit corner.
Jiang Mingxu's kiss was forceful and irresistible. His palm held the back of her head firmly, while his other hand gripped her waist, his fingertips sinking slightly into the soft fabric, as if to confirm her presence.
But his movements were gentle, the caress between his lips and teeth was carefully restrained, as if he were handling some fragile porcelain.
Jin Ran paused, then closed her eyes and gripped the front of his shirt tightly.
He had doubts, so she repeatedly confirmed them; he was domineering, but she was gentle while also showing her claws.
It's often said that women are easily moved to pity.
At first, Jin Ran only felt that this man was mysterious and unfathomable. Later, after learning about his past, she felt a sense of pity for him.
No woman can calmly deal with the ex-boyfriend of the person she likes.
Although she has had many boyfriends, he has never met her, has he?
The inner conflict, tinged with a sense of entitlement and irrationality, vanished upon learning the truth about their marriage and the farcical divorce.
To be honest, it's a bit tragic.
Women are unwilling to listen to their current partner's ex, and men cannot accept being cheated on.
It's not about feelings; it's a judgment of one's own charm.
So all those tiny, pinprick-sized thoughts disappeared, and at least for this moment, she held Jiang Mingxu's arm tighter and tighter.
When they parted ways, both of them were a little out of breath. Jiang Mingxu pressed his forehead against his and asked in a hoarse voice, "What's your name?"
Jin Ran was still reeling from the recent "storm" and hadn't quite caught up: "My name is Jin Ran..."
Jiang Mingxu's eyes darkened: "Your original name."
This time, Jin Ran understood and said earnestly, "Jin Ran."
Her original name was Jin Ran.
Golden herbs display their brilliance, while the beauty of nature fades away. Seemingly delicate herbs possess the resilience to wither and flourish year after year.
/
It was already 10 p.m. when I got back to the hotel.
The receptionist was playing on her phone when she saw them return. She quickly took out the milk tea she had left there and said, "It was bought by your companion who came with you."
Jiang Mingxu raised an eyebrow: "Xiao Li bought this? Only one cup?"
Jin Ran was extremely embarrassed and asked what would happen if they were caught secretly drinking milk tea. She coughed and said, "It's not good to drink milk tea at night, so I only bought one cup, and we'll share it."
Jiang Mingxu did not expose them.
In the end, Jin Ran ate the whole cup of milk tea.
That's why I had too much caffeine and couldn't fall asleep for half the night.
On the way to the airport the next day, I felt drowsy and fell asleep instantly on the plane, missing the chance to properly say goodbye to Yushan.
As they gradually regained their senses, they landed in City A. Xiao Sun drove over and picked them up, taking them back to the villa. Only when she saw the genuine smiles on the faces of Butler Cheng and Chef Wang did Jin Ran truly feel grounded.
She's back.
Although traveling is relaxing, after staying away from home for a long time, she found that the most comfortable place is still her own home.
Because it had taken three days, Jiang Mingxu quickly packed up and went to the company, while Jiang Xuli took out the local specialties she had bought and delivered them to Chen Xunliang.
There was nothing they could do; they knew he had returned from Yushan and insisted on throwing him a welcome-back banquet.
When Jiang Xuli arrived at the location, he found that in addition to Chen Xunliang, there were other members of the basketball team. Everyone was as enthusiastic as before, but his gaze fell on the quiet boy in the corner, and he frowned: "What's he doing here?"
Chen Xunliang put his arm around Chen Xunliang's shoulder and said, "Hey, when we came here we saw him squatting on the road counting ants out of boredom, so we brought him along to play with us."
After all, it was Brother Li who saved him; it would be quite boring for him to play alone.
Jiang Xuli was speechless at Chen Xunliang's presumptuous decision, but he didn't say anything. He remembered that Jin Ran and Wei Cen's sister had a good relationship, so he just considered it as helping to take care of the child.
The group of boys had nothing fun to do, so they went to the arcade to dominate the game. Jiang Xuli always did things this way—either he didn't do it at all, or he did it to the best of his ability.
Knowing that Wei Cen was different from the others, he took the initiative to guide him in the game. Before starting, he reminded himself to be patient, but to his surprise, Wei Cen was able to complete every game on his first try.
Jiang Xuli: "..."
Suddenly, a special piece of music started playing in the arcade. At first, everyone was a little confused, until Chen Xunliang, a regular customer, shouted, "That's record-breaking music! Someone has broken the record!"
Immediately, the group of teenagers became excited.
As Jiang Xuli looked at the progress screen on the machine next to her, a guess formed in her mind.
The next second, his guess was confirmed. The person in charge of the arcade appeared with a big smile, holding several prizes and handing them to Wei Cen: "Congratulations on machine number 32 breaking the record. These are our prizes."
Wei Cen was clearly not used to being surrounded by so many people. He subconsciously lowered his head and took a half step back, his fingers unconsciously clenching the hem of his clothes.
Seeing this, Jiang Xuli, who was initially a little jealous, immediately stepped forward to shield the person behind her and took the things from him.
More and more people gathered around to join in the fun, so the group of teenagers had to leave first. Only when they reached an open area did Wei Cen relax.
Everyone teased him, saying he was a hidden talent, but Wei Cen didn't understand. He handed the prize he had just received to Jiang Xuli.
The latter was stunned.
Jiang Xuli wasn't a particularly outgoing person, and was known throughout school for being a loner. He had never thought there was anything wrong with it before, but now, those words he had previously taken for granted suddenly flashed through his mind—"Giving roses leaves a lingering fragrance," and "Sharing happiness is better than enjoying it alone." In a short period of time, he not only gained teammates to play with, but also received gratitude from others.
It felt like a dream.
At that moment, Jiang Xuli felt that he had grown up. He was about to reach out and take it when he suddenly heard Wei Cen excitedly whisper, "Give it to Teacher Jin."
Jiang Xuli: ?
"Teacher Jin likes me, so I'll give myself to Teacher Jin."
Jiang Xuli: ? ? ?
Wait, who does Teacher Jin like? Say it again?
He was so angry he almost laughed. They'd tried to steal his person, had they?!
Also, who said that woman likes Wei Cen? He and she are stepmother and stepson with no blood relation! You can tell which is more important now!
Thinking this way, Jiang Xuli had long forgotten about the time a few months ago when she coldly demanded to be treated like a stranger.
/
Jin Ran, who was staying in the villa, had no idea that a bloody battle was being fought outside for her sake.
First, I took a petal bath to pamper my skin, and then lay on the lounge chair on the balcony, enjoying a fruit platter that the maid had cut for me. This is the epitome of leisurely bliss.
However, she didn't forget to call Xu Zhen to inquire about Wang Pingping's situation.
Upon learning that the other parents were still determined to send their child away secretly, Jin Ran was at a loss for words.
Xu Zhen said angrily, "If the homeroom teacher hadn't discovered it in time and taken the child away overnight, Wang Pingping would have been on a train by now."
Jin Ran frowned: "Jiang Mingxu said there might be internship positions at the technology department. I'll ask him again tonight."
Both are jobs, but the latter is at least a form of learning and practice. If parents really send their children to the south, they'll probably be washing dishes and cleaning up after themselves every day.
The two chatted briefly, and shortly after hanging up, the phone rang again.
Jin Ran thought Xu Zhen had forgotten to tell her something, but when she answered the phone, she heard Wei Ya's voice. The other party didn't keep her in suspense and said directly, "Ms. Jin, Director Chen would like to invite you to star in his new drama."
"What?" Jin Ran looked confused.
She knows Director Chen, but why did he invite her to act in the film?
Before she could even ask any questions, Wei Ya on the other side told her the answer.
"Director Chen heard that I know you, so he asked me to help convey his attitude: if you are willing to participate, he can give you a level four salary."
Jin Ran understood. Director Chen chose to go through Wei Ya instead of the more familiar Jiang Mingxu, clearly unaware of her relationship with Jiang Mingxu.
The offer was quite generous for a newcomer, far exceeding her current salary. However, after careful consideration, Jin Ran still declined the opportunity.
Firstly, she had no interest in the entertainment industry and had never considered entering it; secondly, public figures are destined to live under the spotlight, with their every move magnified. She had seen too many celebrities' situations after becoming famous—their homes stalked by paparazzi, their unintentional remarks taken out of context, and even the actions of fans who appeared out of nowhere making the idols pay the price. Jin Ran felt she couldn't bear that kind of pressure.
As for whether she might become famous? Jin Ran hadn't even considered that.
If she's not going to do it, fine; but if she is, she'll definitely do it to the best of her ability.
Moreover, the entertainment industry offers fast money but also fast unemployment. Whether in her past or future life, her goal is to secure a stable government job and live a simple, ordinary life.
Thinking of this, Jin Ran couldn't help but silently calculate the time.
More than a month has passed since the teacher recruitment interviews, and we still don't know when the results will be released.
In the evening, Jiang Xuli returned from outside.
Carrying two large bags, he went straight to Jin Ran's room on the second floor and knocked on the door.
"Chen Xunliang and the others insisted on buying it, and there was a lot of it. I can't finish it all by myself."
His expression was natural, and Jin Ran, seeing the full bag, readily agreed.
The two arrived at the restaurant and ate snacks while watching TV. Even when Jinran found a plush bear in her snack, she assumed it was something that came with the snack.
Suddenly, a startled cry came from the second floor. Jin Ran and Chen Xunliang exchanged a glance, puzzled. A moment later, Butler Cheng, carrying the little calf's front legs, hurriedly came out of the room at the far end of the second floor. As soon as Jin Ran approached, she smelled an indescribable odor.
She quickly took a few steps back: "Is this...poop?"
Butler Cheng said anxiously, "That's right. I didn't notice it ran into the room and pooped on President Jiang's bed."
"Where to?" Jin Ran stared in shock, looking at the housekeeper, then at the innocent-looking little calico cat, and finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Jiang Xuli didn't hesitate at all and ran up to the second floor to watch the excitement.
When the boy came out of the room, a faint smile had appeared on his face.
Butler Cheng was at his wit's end.
He quickly directed the maid to clean up the calico cat's "crime" scene, while he carried the cat to the bathroom to groom it. While busy drying the little guy's fur, he contacted a furniture store to deliver a new bed, as his husband was about to arrive home, and they couldn't be without a decent bed.
Unexpectedly, the manufacturer did not have suitable beds available at the moment.
This put Butler Cheng in a difficult position.
Logically speaking, there is another master bedroom on the second floor, which is where Jin Ran lives. There are four guest rooms on the first and third floors, but because there are too many rooms, they can't decide which one to clean.
However, he didn't make things difficult for long. Things were different now; there was another owner in the villa.
"...Madam, that's the situation."
Butler Cheng then explained the whole story.
Jin Ran pondered, "So that room is uninhabitable tonight?"
"I asked several furniture stores I know, and they all said they couldn't get a suitable bed right now," Butler Cheng said cautiously. "Do you think it would be better if the gentleman stayed at..."
Butler Cheng meant to ask which guest room would be available, but Jin Ran misunderstood and thought he was asking about her own bedroom.
As the master bedroom on the second floor, Jin Ran's room is more than 30 square meters, and the bed is a 2.5-meter-wide bed. Of course, 2.5 meters is her estimate, and the actual width may be a little longer.
In contrast, Jiang Mingxu's room is only a dozen square meters, giving it a cramped feel.
Thinking that they had already slept in the same bed in Yushan, there was no need to be coy now. Besides, Jiang Mingsu didn't like cats in the first place. She only gave in because she and Jiang Xuli liked them. If he knew that the kitten had pooped and peed on his bed, he might throw the kitten out.
She nodded decisively: "Okay, then move to my room."
Butler Cheng was taken aback.
The wife wants to sleep in the same room as her husband?
He still remembered when his wife first married into the family, she asked to sleep in separate rooms so as not to disturb her husband's sleep. Although he found it a bit strange, his husband agreed and gave up the master bedroom for his wife, while he moved to the room at the far end of the second floor.
Why has Madam suddenly changed her mind?
Although she had doubts in her heart, she did not show them on her face. As the villa's butler, Butler Cheng knew how to behave properly and never commented on the decisions of her employers. Moreover, the harmonious relationship between the husband and wife was something to be happy about.
After receiving permission, Butler Cheng immediately went down to make preparations. Once everything was in order, the sound of a car engine could be heard outside the courtyard.
Jiang Mingxu stepped into the foyer, his gaze sweeping over the empty living room. Seeing no one in sight, he went straight upstairs.
He pushed open the door as usual, but his movements froze—the bedroom was already empty, the bed was nowhere to be seen, the wardrobe was open, and there wasn't a single piece of clothing left in it. The whole room was so clean that it looked as if no one had ever lived there.
If he hadn't returned during the day, he probably would have thought he was dreaming.
Jiang Mingxu pondered for a moment, then turned to find Butler Cheng.
"Oh, it was Madam who instructed that all your belongings be moved to the master bedroom."
Butler Cheng said with a smile.
Jiang Mingsu paused.
"Move to the master bedroom?"
His tone was a little strange, and his first reaction was to rule out the possibility of "because of himself." Jiang Mingxu had this self-awareness. Although Jin Ran was interested in him, she was definitely not the type to change herself for a man.
Although I don't know her past, I can clearly feel from our interactions that she is a girl who looks gentle but is actually emotionally independent.
Sure enough, after Butler Cheng recounted what Xiao Sanhua had done, Jiang Mingxu's expression remained unchanged: "Where is she now?"
"Playing games with the young master on the third floor."
Jiang Mingxu nodded and did not disturb them.
At seven o'clock, Chef Wang prepared dinner, and Jiang Mingxu went upstairs to call people. As soon as he arrived at the door, he heard screams and howls coming from the game room.
"Ahhh, it's chasing me! What should I do? What should I do?!"—This is Jin Ran acting on her own without permission.
"Why did you rush up again? Tsk, hurry up and throw the bomb over here!" — This is Jiang Xuli, a high-level player.
Less than a second after he finished speaking, Jiang Xuli's character, lacking the cooperation of his teammates, was just one second away from being killed by the boss.
The air fell silent. At that moment, Jiang Mingxu walked in: "Is it done? Chef Wang has prepared the meal. There will be stir-fried shrimp tonight."
Fried shrimp is a favorite dish for everyone in the family, but it didn't interest Jin Ran at the moment: "There's still one last boss to beat, and I just can't seem to get past it."
Jiang Xuli snorted: "If you hadn't been running around all the time, we would have finished long ago." No matter how good he was, it was a two-player game, and it would be difficult for him to pass the level by himself.
Jin Ran retorted, "It's clearly because you're too bad!"
Jiang Mingxu glanced at the screen, then sat down next to Jin Ran: "How do you play this?"
Jin Ran immediately abandoned Jiang Xuli and asked, "Do you want to play?"
"Okay, I'll give it a try."
Let's give it a try.
Jiang Xuli handed his controller directly to his dad. To be honest, he was almost at his breaking point after being stuck for half an hour. He didn't think his dad could beat the game, since he had never seen his dad play games before: "The controls are very simple. X is to interact, Y is to dash, B is to jump, and A is to cancel the interaction."
The explanation was straightforward, and Jiang Mingxu was quite clever; he mastered it after a few tries and then began attempting the levels that the two of them had been struggling to pass.
Unsurprisingly, the first two times, they were crushed by the boss as soon as they left the safe zone. Jiang Xuli couldn't help but say, "This is a two-player game. Two people need to cooperate to move around and carry bombs, but the bombs have a limited lifespan and cannot be held in your hands for too long."
Jiang Mingxu neither confirmed nor denied it.
He changed his strategy, having Jin Ran move only one square at a time. Because the movement distance was short, Jin Ran was no longer flustered. He seized opportunities to move quickly and finally successfully reached the finish line.
At this moment, the bomb remained in his hand, and the boss naturally let Jin Ran go, allowing the latter to rush over.
Jiang Xuli: "???"
"It's a success!"
In contrast, Jin Ran was overjoyed. Her cheers blended with the game's sound effects. She couldn't believe she had passed it so easily. Her eyes sparkled as she looked to the side: "Amazing! How come you're good at this too? Have you played it before?"
Jiang Mingxu put down the controller, a slight smile playing on his lips: "No, but the principles behind these games are all pretty much the same. You can figure out the patterns after playing them a few times."
Upon hearing this, Jin Ran immediately glanced sideways at her aggrieved stepson, her gaze making the boy's face turn red. He jumped up and down, saying, "I can pass the level too! The last one doesn't count! Let's play another round!"
"Let's eat first."
Jiang Mingxu stood up, saying, "Deep-fried shrimp doesn't taste good when it's cold."
Jin Ran immediately nodded: "That's right, that's right, let's eat first!" Having successfully completed the game, she rediscovered her love for fried shrimp, and had no mood to play games anymore.
Even so, they did not continue eating after finishing their meal.
Everything was taken care of before the maid went off duty.
Now that Jiang Mingxu's belongings have been moved to the master bedroom, Jin Ran was prepared when she opened the wardrobe door, but when she saw her personal underwear exposed in front of her, she felt inexplicably embarrassed, so she covered it with a coat.
Then, taking her change of clothes, she quickly went to the bathroom to take a shower before Jiang Mingxu arrived.
Just as she finished showering in twenty minutes for the first time in her life and came out of the bathroom, Jiang Mingxu happened to push the door open and come in.
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