Chapter 86 Sleep with You
Jiang Chuan thought that Lin Yu had nothing to worry about, whether he stayed at his current company or switched to another, whether he worked for someone else or started his own business.
Even if all else fails, there are plenty of resources to utilize among your own clients.
Although he rarely gets involved in such social interactions, this small sacrifice is nothing for Lin Yu. At most, he'll give up some lawyer fees, and besides, he's done it before.
Lin Yu understood the meaning behind Jiang Chuan's words. With the year-long deadline approaching, she should indeed make preparations in advance.
In particular, Chief Engineer Wang's attitude at the morning meeting made her feel that if she continued to work here, not only would she have no hope of promotion or a raise, but the progress of future research and development would also be a problem.
The company appears calm on the surface, but undercurrents are surging beneath. Lin Yu even saw news about the chairman pledging shares on the Tonghuashun software not long ago.
In fact, over the past six months, she has laid a lot of groundwork for her future career development, and she has consciously or unconsciously wanted to feel more at ease and confident when she stands with Jiang Chuan.
She used her spare time to pass the Level 1 Construction Engineer exam and also began reviewing her past project experience. At the same time, she inquired about industry trends with several former colleagues, planning to try her luck at other companies after the holiday with their introductions.
But at this moment, Lin Yu clearly had more pressing matters to attend to. Jiang Chuan's attitude had annoyed her, making her unwilling to continue the topic of work. She even deliberately went against him, stubbornly refusing to back down.
She raised her head, her gaze sweeping coldly across Jiang Chuan's face. A cold smirk played on one corner of her lips as she said aggressively, "I don't need your backing, as long as you promise you'll never lie to me."
Lin Yu's eyes welled up with tears, making her look pitiful in the dimly lit restaurant. "Did you really have to... make me unhappy two days before my birthday? You know perfectly well that my birthday is the most important thing to me."
Upon hearing Lin Yu's question, Jiang Chuan's Adam's apple bobbed.
Of course he remembered. Because Lin Yu's birthday always coincided with a work day, they had already discussed having a simple meal on the day of her birthday and then celebrating it properly during the National Day holiday.
Therefore, the two planned to go snorkeling in Southeast Asia two months ago. In his storage room, there are still straw hats and swimsuits that Lin Yu had excitedly ordered from Taobao a while ago.
He took a deep breath and suddenly felt the pent-up frustration in his chest dissipate a bit. It had been so many years since he had been angered to the point of losing his composure; probably only this person in front of him could make his emotions rise and fall like a rollercoaster.
"It's my fault," he apologized softly, taking Lin Yu's hand again. Her fingertips were icy cold, and Jiang Chuan warmed them in his palm little by little.
"Banban." He called her by her nickname, his thumb gently stroking the back of her hand. "I said I would always be by your side. That will never change, but I need your trust!"
Seeing Jiang Chuan's easily controlled anger, Lin Yu suddenly realized that during all the time they had spent together, the two of them had never argued or even raised their voices at each other.
But is true love really like this?
Or perhaps all his passion and sharp edges had already been exhausted by Bai Qianhe? And she was nothing more than a tool, docile enough to accept becoming the background figure in his life.
At this moment, the anger of the anticipated betrayal extinguished her reason, and even the gentleness and consideration that Jiang Chuan usually showed her turned into a successful performance of emotional management.
"Trust is something you earn yourself." Lin Yu pulled her fingers back one by one from his grasp, completely losing the desire to communicate. "I'm so tired, I don't want to talk about such heavy topics anymore."
The argument came to an abrupt end, but the destructive power of language did not dissipate, and the atmosphere had reached freezing point.
Lin Yu mechanically poked at the rice grains in the bowl with his chopsticks, while Jiang Chuan's peeled shrimp lay awkwardly on the plate, gradually drying out.
The sudden ringing of the phone broke the silence. Jiang Chuan put down his chopsticks, answered the call, chatted briefly, and then hung up with a sigh.
"I didn't want to bring this up now." He put down his phone, his eyes slightly gray, but Lin Yu was too absorbed in his own emotions to notice.
“But if we wait until your birthday, you might be even angrier.” Jiang Chuan paused, then lowered his eyes. “The plans for the National Day holiday might have to be postponed for a while; recently…”
"Whatever."
Lin Yu suddenly stood up, wiped his mouth, crumpled a napkin into a ball, and threw it into the half-finished bowl of porridge.
She looked down at him, a cold smile playing on her lips. "It's not like I can't live without you."
After saying that, she grabbed the handbag hanging on the back of the chair and walked out of the restaurant, leaving Jiang Chuan alone facing the mess on the table.
Jiang Chuan hadn't expected Lin Yu to be so angry. He paused for a moment, then pulled out a few banknotes and placed them on the table. Without bothering to get change, he got up and chased after her.
He rushed forward and reached out to grab Lin Yu's wrist, but she dodged him. Jiang Chuan didn't want to be embarrassed in front of everyone, so he frowned and patiently comforted her.
"Don't say such hurtful things. Let's make up for it properly after we're done with this busy period, okay?"
There was a time when his gentleness could always soften Lin Yu's heart. But now she only felt irony, as if all of Jiang Chuan's compromises were just a hunter's hypocritical mercy towards his prey.
Lin Yu didn't know if he didn't care about her birthday or if he had already planned to find an excuse to spend time with someone else. She bit her lower lip hard, swallowing back the questions raging in her chest.
After all, she had discovered these so-called truths through eavesdropping, and she didn't know how to confront them. This feeling of being unable to assert her authority and assert her position prevented Lin Yu from venting her anger through normal channels.
It seems that once the truth comes out, their relationship will immediately come to an end, and she will leave a permanent stain in Jiang Chuan's heart.
"I said...it's up to you."
She heard her own voice as if it had been chilled to the bone, each word severing the last vestiges of tenderness between them. It was as if she wanted to tear apart Jiang Chuan's facade through this childish act, to anger and irritate him, and indirectly punish him for the mistakes he had made against her.
"Your legs are your own, you can go wherever you want."
Jiang Chuan's temples throbbed, as if a dull knife was churning inside his brain. Prolonged sleep deprivation had pushed him to the brink of mental collapse.
Recently, my grandmother's condition suddenly worsened, and her delirium became increasingly severe. Her emotions fluctuated wildly, she frequently experienced hallucinations, and sometimes she would even suddenly lose control and assault the caregivers.
The nursing home indicated tactfully that if the elderly person's condition did not improve within a week, they would likely need to be transferred to a hospital for more specialized treatment.
However, the company was at a critical stage of transformation, and he had limited time. He was busy running between the ward and the conference room every day, barely having time to close his eyes. He really had no time to pay attention to Lin Yu's unpredictable temper.
He had hoped to have a good talk with Lin Yu tonight, to lay out the current situation at home and at the company, and to plan their future together.
Lin Yu's continued sarcasm completely enraged him, and his face visibly turned cold. "What exactly do you want? Do you want me to dissolve the company and revolve around you all day?"
He loosened his tie in frustration, his voice laced with suppressed anger. "Is this the kind of man you want to live with?"
"Jiang Chuan, don't blame all your so-called sacrifices on me. You work hard for yourself."
Lin Yu turned around coldly and looked at him, saying each word clearly: "And I am not your appendage, I don't necessarily have to rely on you!"
Jiang Chuan's pupils contracted sharply as he suddenly recalled the phone call Lin Yu had received in front of him a few days ago, and a vague guess gradually gathered in his mind.
He stepped forward, grabbed her wrist, and whispered, "So, who are you going to cling to?"
Jiang Chuan stared intently into her reddened eyes and asked coldly, "Have you ever thought about marrying me?"
Lin Yu struggled twice but couldn't break free, so he simply gave up. "Of course not, it was all a lie, just kidding."
"I only dated you so I could sleep with you. You're so easy to sleep with, and it doesn't even cost me any money."
As soon as the words left her mouth, she was stunned. How could she stand on a busy street and make such a lewd joke like a shrew?
Jiang Chuan laughed in anger, grabbed Lin Yu's waist, and hoisted her onto his shoulder without saying a word.
"Put me down! Jiang Chuan, you bastard! I'm calling the police to arrest you!" Lin Yu struggled desperately, his hair disheveled, kicking wildly, and scratching Jiang Chuan's back with his nails.
"Didn't you want to sleep with me? Well, I'll grant your wish."
Jiang Chuan walked towards the car, yanked open the door, and threw Lin Yu into the passenger seat like a sack of potatoes. Her head accidentally hit the steering wheel, and a sharp pain made her vision go black.
By the time she came to her senses and tried to escape, Jiang Chuan had already secured her with the seatbelt, then got into the car and locked the doors. He stepped on the gas, and the car drove away from the restaurant.
Lin Yu wasn't the type to impulsively jump out of a moving vehicle; she valued her life more than anyone else.
At that moment, she simply turned to the side in silence, pressed her forehead against the cold car window, and remained silent with a cold face, treating Jiang Chuan, who was driving beside her, as if he were invisible.
She thought he would drive straight back to his house, but half an hour later, he stopped in front of her rented apartment building.
Jiang Chuan turned off the car, and the interior instantly fell into a suffocating silence.
He didn't intend to get out of the car for the time being. He just turned to the side, looked at Lin Yu's stiff and resistant back, reached out and tucked the stray hairs around her face behind her ear.
"Did you hurt yourself?" His voice was low and hoarse with a hint of fatigue.
Lin Yu kept his eyes closed, pretending to be asleep, and remained motionless, responding to his concern with silence.
Jiang Chuan looked at her stubborn back of the head and sighed almost inaudibly, his tone carrying a rare, almost resigned helplessness.
"From now on... don't say such hurtful things on purpose anymore. I can't maintain absolute emotional stability 24 hours a day either."
Upon hearing this, Lin Yu, whose back was to him, trembled slightly. After a few seconds of silence, he finally uttered his first calm statement in days: "I didn't want to either."
Jiang Chuan nodded silently where Lin Yu couldn't see him, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "There's been a bit of a problem at the sanatorium, so I really can't leave during the National Day holiday."
His hand gently stroked the top of her head. "Shall we have a proper talk after we're done with this busy period?"
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