Chapter 31 Wild Rose These two people, how do they look like siblings?
Qiao Zimu stood up in disbelief, clenching his fists and staring intently at the two figures.
She hadn't contacted him these past few days, and he assumed she was busy, carefully avoiding bothering her. Little did he know, she had someone new in her life. Would an ordinary male colleague accompany her shopping late at night? Would they chat so naturally and pleasantly?
What's even more ridiculous is that he initially knew nothing about her.
So what is he? A best friend? Or just a casual playmate?
Qiao Qinghuai also looked her over and commented objectively, "She's not bad looking." Then, leaning towards Qiao Zimu, he smiled and said, "She's full of youthful energy, the kind of style young girls would like these days."
Qiao Zimu remained silent, his handsome face gloomy, his eyes fixed on Song Qingqu as if he were about to unleash a torrent of jealousy to burn him to ashes.
The two people outside the window were unaware that they were being watched. Their thoughts were racing, their brainwaves connecting in a wild and unrestrained manner, outputting a whole bunch of things that no one else could understand, which made them burst into laughter.
Lan Jia straightened up, wiped away the tears that had splashed from the corners of her eyes, and suggested, "How about we go eat? Let's go to one of my favorite restaurants."
Song Qingqu agreed. After laughing, he composed himself and glanced at her intently.
Once in the car, the two didn't talk much. Lan Jia leaned against the window, a faint smile on her face, gradually recovering from her earlier ecstasy.
She asked Zuo Tai to take them to Ting Rui Restaurant for a delicious meal, thus concluding today's "date" perfectly.
However, she didn't notice that a familiar car was also traveling along the same road, continuing to drive ahead of them.
When we arrived, we parked the car a short distance outside the porch and waited for the other vehicles to leave before taking them to the door.
Lan Jia straightened up and waited listlessly. Her gaze fell on the license plate of the car in front of her, and she was immediately chilled as if doused with cold water.
Before I could tell whether I was happy or sad, the car door slowly opened and a person got out.
Tall, upright, and formal, even though only his profile is shown, he is already quite eye-catching.
He reached out to button his suit jacket and stepped forward, but was stopped by someone who had been waiting at the door.
Lan Jia's gaze drifted lightly to the beautiful woman in front of him. She had wavy hair, berry-red lips, and was extremely strict with her figure, so much so that she could easily fit into a black dress with a size zero waist.
Instead of her preferred pearls, she opted for more dazzling gold accessories, including high-quality bracelets and rings.
During conversation, body language is particularly rich; two hands painted with burgundy nail polish move gracefully and freely, their knuckles clearly defined.
Lan Jia stared intently, scrutinizing her closely, trying to find even the slightest imperfection. But she found none.
Her meticulously styled hair showed a healthy glow from long-term maintenance, her lipstick was applied perfectly, and even her high heels were impeccably thin-soled, pointed-toe stilettos. Beneath her snow-white and slender ankles, a beautifully curved instep was revealed.
Perfect, perfect, perfect... This damn perfection!
She especially dared not look at her face; her eyebrows, eyes, and nose were all meticulously sculpted, and her smile was so radiant it almost burned her eyes.
She wished the person standing opposite her wasn't him.
Lan Jia, hiding in the dark carriage, stood stiffly watching the two chat familiarly, their eyes meeting, evenly matched. She suddenly felt like a dirty gray rat in the sewer, clinging to the drain, only able to peek at the sunlit world outside through the grille.
Zuo Tai noticed it early on and observed Lan Jia's expression through the rearview mirror. He wisely refrained from driving the car forward.
Seeing this, Song Qingqu roughly understood the situation. He glanced at her with concern and then suggested in a relaxed manner, "I've been thinking about it all the way here, but I still can't get used to French food. How about we go to another restaurant?"
Lan Jia didn't respond, but stared straight at the two of them until their figures disappeared, before weakly saying, "Let's go."
Inside the hotel, in the banquet hall, glasses clinked and elegantly dressed people mingled.
An alumni reunion is proceeding smoothly.
Ignoring the noisy crowd, Meng Cenjun walked straight to the small hall next door.
Seraphina, who was standing next to her, laughed and said, "When I sent you the invitation, I thought you wouldn't come."
"We've had several gatherings over the years, but you've always been absent."
Meng Cenjun said in a flat tone, "Sorry, I'm too busy with work to get away."
Seraphina sensed his perfunctory attitude and smiled with a hint of reproach: "Are you really that busy? Or are you deliberately avoiding seeing us? Luckily, Professor Edmund is here for academic exchange, otherwise we might not even see you."
"Ten years have passed, and he still thinks of you as his student. This time, he secretly attended the alumni reunion, specifically requesting to see you."
“Ewen, when you gave up everything to return to your country, Professor Edmund was angry on the surface, but he was actually feeling sorry for you.”
"You...haven't you ever regretted it even a little bit?"
Meng Cenjun hesitated, and before he could answer, three or five people rushed over and blocked their way with exaggerated envy.
"Congratulations!"
"What?" she asked, somewhat amused.
"Professor Edmund's prized student, a rising star in academia." One of them leaned in and whispered, "He's going to be promoted to the youngest associate professor next year. Isn't that something to congratulate him on?"
Seraphina smiled modestly, "It's still undecided, so please keep it a secret for now! If there's a party, I'll definitely invite you all."
The waiter, ever observant, handed her a tray, and she raised her champagne glass to signal to everyone.
What should have been a routine, polite exchange ended there, but Meng Cenjun had already been the subject of much attention for some time, and someone was looking at her with a sweet gaze, asking curiously, "Seraphina, is this your boyfriend? He's so handsome."
Seraphina smiled, neither confirming nor denying, and gestured for Meng Cenjun to leave with her.
Meng Cenjun held her wine glass and politely raised it in greeting, then drank it all and placed it back on the tray.
After the two had walked away, the group gathered around and whispered among themselves.
"Did you see the ring on his pinky finger? Maybe he's a bachelor."
Immediately someone laughed: "Vera, your wish has been dashed, what a pity."
“A pinky ring isn’t a wedding ring. As long as you’re single, what’s impossible?” Vera retorted.
"But Seraphina seems to be interested in him. Who would dare to compete with a lioness for him?"
Everyone knew she was notoriously ruthless, and a few people chuckled.
After a while, someone else asked, "But who is that man next to her? Is he also an alumnus? With a face like that, it's hard not to remember him, right?"
“I just heard Seraphina call him Ewen.”
There are many Ewens in the physics department, but which one is it?
"There was one ten years ago, also a student of Professor Edmund."
"I remember now, he was a genius among geniuses! What a pity..."
"What's a pity?" everyone asked.
"I heard that something happened in his family back then, so he gave up his promising future and went back to China to do business."
Another wave of regret and sighs ensued.
Lan Jia also let out a long sigh.
"Are you full?" Song Qingqu asked, looking at Lan Jia's plate, which was still more than half full.
She nodded, but had no appetite and put the food down after a few bites.
I still feel tightness in my chest and shortness of breath. I have to repeatedly inhale and exhale before I feel a little better.
"Do you want to go home and rest?"
He glanced at the time; it was already very late.
Home?
Without a second thought, Lan Jia shook her head. As soon as she entered the room, she was unsure whether there were eyes watching her from the shadows, like spider webs ensnaring her.
She felt utterly horrified and nauseous.
And for some inexplicable reason, she didn't really want to face Meng Cenjun.
"How about we go for a walk?" Lan Jia suggested. "I just bought a skateboard, can you teach me?"
Song Qingqu smiled and said, "I'll play along to the end."
The two left the Spanish restaurant and headed to the riverside park, where it was open and convenient for them to practice.
Lan Jia told Zuo Tai not to follow her anymore, as she wanted to talk to him alone. Zuo Tai hesitated at first, but knowing that she was in a bad mood, he didn't dare to be too forceful. So he parked the car a short distance away and observed her.
We walked side by side along the riverside promenade. The cool night breeze gently blew, dispersing the humid and stale air from being in public places for too long.
"Don't you have anything to ask me?"
"How did you manage to run away in front of the restaurant?" he asked jokingly.
Lan Jia lowered her eyes. Why did she run away? It's so unlike her.
"Is that your brother?" Song Qingqu asked with certainty.
"So you're unhappy because of him?" He thought for a moment, then added, "Almost every time."
“We didn’t argue.” She instinctively felt protective of him.
“You’re just being insecure,” he said, hitting the nail on the head.
"Afraid he'll get a girlfriend?"
"Are you still afraid he'll leave you?"
“I just don’t want him to hide anything from me,” Lan Jia retorted.
"You two aren't siblings, are you?"
"How did you figure that out?" she asked, taken aback. Then she muttered, "Even siblings don't necessarily look alike..."
"I guessed right." Song Qingqu smiled slyly, but in his heart he was thinking: How do these two people look like siblings?
"Do you also think we're weird?" Her voice turned cold as she thought of the look in Aunt Ming's eyes when she examined her that morning.
Before that, she never thought that her relationship with Meng Cenjun was strange or inappropriate. She also never realized how twisted and absurd they seemed to outsiders.
These strange looks were like ten thousand sharp thorns piercing her heart, causing her the most extreme pain and the most extreme hurt.
She just didn't want to break up with him, so why does everyone think it's wrong? Why does everyone want to stop them?
What angered her even more was that the person she trusted and cared about most did not stand with her on the same side immediately.
She didn't want to always be sad and angry because of him.
But how could he let her bear all of this alone?
Song Qingqu turned around to face her, and walked backwards step by step.
"Lan Jia, think about it carefully."
Do you think this is just family affection?
After he finished speaking, he smiled, landed his skateboard, exerted a little force, and paddled forward freely and unrestrainedly.
How can it not be family affection? What profound nonsense is he trying to sound?
Lan Jia stood there, lost in thought, watching Song Qingqu slide further and further away. The road was so dark that he could barely see anyone.
"Hey! Wait for me!"
She gritted her teeth and placed her own pink octopus-patterned skateboard on the ground. However, lacking experience, she could only step on it with one foot and slowly and comically chase after it.
In a flurry of activity.
My mind is in turmoil.
Author's Note: Song Qingqu's inner monologue: More like lovers than siblings. [Hugs]
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