Chapter 65 [VIP] Best Friend's Shield (3)

When Nan Yan heard this, she couldn't believe her ears at first. Her expression was one of disbelief, her eyes slightly widened, and she looked at him in confusion.

She thought it was her illusion, but when she realized she had not heard it wrong, she almost uncontrollably rushed over and threw herself into Jiang Shaoyan's arms.

She hugged him tightly, tighter and tighter, as if the person in front of her would disappear if she loosened her grip even a little.

The emotions that had been suppressed deep in my heart finally found an outlet, and I couldn't control my tears from falling. But it was obvious that this time was different from the previous times, as I was crying tears of joy.

"You said it yourself, don't lie to me."

Nan Yan's choked voice carried a hint of cautious hope, as if she was testing him. However, due to some things that they both knew, she dared not say too much and could only look at him with tears in her eyes.

In fact, Jiang Shaoyan regretted it right after he finished speaking.

He just felt a little guilty about her, so he consciously agreed to the matter, but guilt is not love after all.

He soon realized that if he didn't like her, he shouldn't give her hope.

But the words had already been spoken, and it was too late to take them back, especially when he saw Nan Yan's expression of being completely obsessed with him, the words he originally wanted to explain were stuck in his throat and he couldn't utter them.

After a long silence, he spoke softly:

"...Okay, let's start over."

After receiving such a positive answer, Nan Yan finally couldn't help but smile. Her smile was gentle, and even her eyebrows were filled with tenderness, and her joy was undoubtedly revealed.

Perhaps because he saw that she was crying too suppressedly and sadly before, Jiang Shaoyan did not push away her arms at the first moment. If he pushed her away now, it would be a bit of a cover-up.

But he didn't reach out to hug her back.

Jiang Shaoyan was still not used to her touch and even felt a little repulsed. Although his face showed some sign, his body was still very obvious and his whole body was as stiff as a piece of wood.

Nan Yan also knew what it meant to stop when enough was enough. She was not in a hurry. Just when the other party was about to lose patience and push her away, Nan Yan took the lead in letting go of her hand, then raised her head and glanced at him cautiously:

"So you're still planning on leaving?"

Jiang Shaoyan looked at her, hesitated for a moment, and after thinking it over, he decided, "Forget it, I won't leave for now." So he put down the luggage he was packing.

Nan Yan couldn't help but smile this time. Her eyes almost curved into crescents. She finally calmed down. "It's good that you're not leaving. By the way, we've been talking for so long. Are you hungry? Do you want me to cook something for you?"

Jiang Shaoyan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Let's go out and eat."

Nan Yan nodded and naturally agreed.

…

Jiang Shaoyan went to the bathroom to wash his face and changed his clothes. When he came out, he saw Nan Yan had already packed up and was sitting on the sofa waiting for him quietly and gently.

Jiang Shaoyan stared at her cheeks and found that she seemed to have put on some light makeup. Her lips were rosy and slightly pursed, which contrasted with her fair skin, highlighting her gentle temperament to the extreme.

Especially when she smiled at him with her eyes bent, there was a hint of brightness than usual, making her look particularly charming.

Under normal circumstances, he probably would not have noticed it, mainly because a lot of things happened in the last few days, and everything was related to her, so sometimes his attention would unconsciously shift to her, making him unable to help but take a few more glances.

But after watching it too much, it feels a bit strange?

This kind of Nan Yan always makes him feel somewhat familiar, and there is also a sense of inexplicable incongruity, but he can't tell exactly where.

In fact, the two of them didn't go out for dinner very often. The few times they did go out, they used his busy work as an excuse and ended the meal hastily. They even rarely watched a movie.

Zhou Nanyan is not a particularly proactive person. She doesn't have many demands and is easily satisfied. She usually listens carefully to everything he says. She is a very qualified girlfriend, gentle and considerate, the type that most men like.

But he was not included in this overwhelming majority.

Jiang Shaoyan originally wanted to take her to eat Western food, but Nan Yan refused. Instead, she took him to a famous noodle restaurant nearby with great enthusiasm.

The noodle shop is not very big and is a bit old, but it is very clean inside and out, which shows that the service is very meticulous.

Since graduating from university, Jiang Shaoyan seldom came to places like this to eat. Looking at the simple living environment around him, he was a little uncomfortable for a while, but he also felt it was a bit novel.

He felt that this was not something she would do. If it were Fang Wanrou, then perhaps it might be possible.

In his impression, Wanrou loves to eat, especially these kinds of snacks with a very strong folk flavor.

For a while, she was obsessed with exploring various small shops that were not very famous but quite amazing, recording various delicacies, and then compiling them into a book as a souvenir.

These shops are usually hidden in some roadside alleys or in some winding lanes. She can accurately find places that most people have never heard of.

During that time, Fu Qingzhou was busy with work and had no time to accompany her, so it was almost always him who accompanied Fang Wanrou to try all kinds of niche and delicious food near the university.

Thanks to her, the two of them had a very pleasant time.

However, Zhou Nanyan was different. Perhaps it was because of her slow personality. He could vaguely feel that Zhou Nanyan was always a little unconfident in front of him. The less confident a person is, the more they value face, especially in a relationship. They always hope to show their best side to each other, so she rarely accompanied him to eat in places like this.

Nan Yan ordered two bowls of ramen.

The boss was a middle-aged man wearing a turban. He was nimble and quick in his movements. When he saw a customer approaching, he immediately smiled warmly and said, "Okay, two servings, right? Do you want spicy ramen?"

"...Add more."

The two found an empty seat and sat down. Nan Yan sat opposite him. When she heard the boss's question, she had almost no hesitation and answered quickly.

Hearing this, Jiang Shaoyan glanced at her and suddenly realized that he couldn't understand what she was thinking.

One of the few things he remembered about her preferences was that she had a light taste and didn't like spicy or stimulating food, but today something was amiss.

He couldn't help asking, "Don't you dislike eating these?"

Nan Yan seemed a little surprised. She didn't expect that he could still remember her taste. She smiled at him and said, "You have to change your taste. Besides, this restaurant is very good. Maybe I will like it very much."

This is normal, Jiang Shaoyan didn't say much.

But the sense of disharmony in my heart became even stronger.

He didn't know why, but he always felt that Nan Yan in front of him made him think of Wan Rou?

Is it his illusion?

There were not many customers in the noodle shop. Within a few minutes, two bowls of steaming ramen were served to the table. The bright red chili oil floating in the noodles made people's noses itch uncontrollably.

Jiang Shaoyan was not a picky eater, but his eyes lit up noticeably when the noodles were served. This was very much to his taste. It should be said that his preferences had already been changed to suit Su Wanrou's when he and she visited various small shops together.

Coming to places like this always reminds him of the time he spent with Fang Wanrou in the past.

Thinking of this, something seemed to flash through Jiang Shaoyan's mind. His eyes fell on Nan Yan's outfit today. He paused for a moment, then thought of her abnormal behavior today, and instantly seemed to understand something.

Is she...deliberately imitating Wanrou?

But her imitation was not like that!

I forced myself to suppress the strange feeling in my heart.

Jiang Shaoyan stopped looking at her and started eating noodles instead. He ate very politely, with his head slightly lowered. His lips were slightly red from the soup. He didn't even move his chopsticks, but the bowl of noodles was almost empty.

Seeing this, Nan Yan also lowered her head and took a bite. Her expression changed slightly, but she still swallowed it with a smile.

Maybe her acting skills weren't good enough, Jiang Shaoyan could clearly see that something was wrong with her expression.

"What's wrong? Is it not to your taste?" Jiang Shaoyan asked casually, "You look like you haven't even touched your chopsticks?"

Hearing this, Nan Yan's expression froze, and then she shook her head quickly. She didn't want him to see how reluctant she was, so she decisively picked up a piece of noodles with chopsticks and stuffed it into her mouth. However, she moved too quickly and was accidentally stung by the chili pepper. In just a moment, her whole face turned red as if she had been smeared with rouge, and even her tears were about to come out from the spiciness.

"Cough cough..." Nan Yan kept coughing.

Jiang Shaoyan frowned, poured her some water, and patted her on the back, "Forget it, if you don't like it, don't eat it. Drink some water first."

Hearing this, Nan Yan seemed even more anxious, as if she was afraid that he wouldn't believe her. She snatched the bowl away without hesitation, then bit the noodles without any image, and said vaguely, "No, I don't dislike it. It's just that this is the first time I've eaten something so spicy, so I'm not used to it. Believe me, cough cough cough..."

Before he could finish his words, he started coughing violently again, and his whole face turned red.

Jiang Shaoyan almost subconsciously held her wrist and said in a reproachful tone, "Okay, stop eating. Do you want to choke yourself to death?"

Nan Yan heard the seriousness in his tone and slowly stopped her movements. However, when she thought about how she could have some problems even with her meal, she immediately lowered her head in annoyance.

After seeing her miserable look, Jiang Shaoyan didn't know what was wrong.

Although she knew it wasn't her problem, the confusion in her heart still reached its peak in an instant.

"You don't have to force yourself to imitate others. There is only one Su Wanrou that I like. No matter how much you imitate her, you are not her! Besides, you are you, not someone else, so stop doing these insignificant little things. They have no meaning to me."

When Nan Yan heard Jiang Shaoyan say this, her face turned pale instantly, and the fingers that were tightly holding the chopsticks trembled, "I didn't... I just..."

He hesitated for a long time but couldn't make any clear statement.

In the end, I could only remain silent.

Nan Yan pursed her lips, feeling that everything she did seemed particularly ridiculous in the other party's eyes.

After saying these words, Jiang Shaoyan felt that his tone was too harsh. He had clearly promised to start over with her, so why did he say such embarrassing words?

The atmosphere between the two became depressing again.

Neither of them spoke after that until they left the noodle shop, Nan Yan kept her head down and looked depressed, completely different from the good mood she was in when she came.

Jiang Shaoyan looked at her unconsciously again.

Whenever she walked, she would deliberately stay close to his shoulder, not too close but not too far away. He didn't know how she did it.

The back of her hand would rub against his from time to time, as if she wanted to hold his hand but didn't dare to take the initiative for fear that he would reject her. Seeing this, he suddenly wanted to laugh, and for some reason, his heart softened.

Then he reached out and grabbed her wrist.

Nan Yan was so shocked that she didn't react at all. Then she started to move her hands and feet. Fortunately, she reacted quickly and didn't make any jokes.

If the hand holding just now was just a momentary impulse, then Jiang Shaoyan really wanted to laugh now. Why didn't he realize that his girlfriend had such an interesting side before?

Especially when I saw that the other person was so nervous that even his earlobes were a little red, I suddenly had the urge to reach out and knead them.