Speaking of which, this was already the third time Jiang Xule had lost her job because of her. Fang Yize was momentarily at a loss for words; it seemed her appearance was quite ill-timed.
“This time it has nothing to do with you. Even if the boss hadn’t fired me, I would have resigned myself.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the bodyguard sitting in the driver’s seat spoke up: “Second Young Lady, where are we going now?”
It was still an hour and a half until dinner time. If they ate dinner too early, she would be too hungry to sleep in the middle of the night.
So, Fang Yize changed her original plan to go out to eat and turned to ask for Jiang Xule’s opinion.
Jiang Xule had no intention of eating at a restaurant outside. There were a few bags of instant noodles left at home, which would suffice for a meal.
“I’m going home. If it’s not on your way, I can get out and walk.”
“It’s on the way! Drive.”
The vehicle stopped at the intersection of Liu Street. Jiang Xule said her thanks and opened the car door to get out.
Fang Yize leaned against the car window, watching her receding figure. A decision struggled in her heart for a while before she finally got out of the car just before Jiang Xule turned the corner.
“Uncle Bodyguard, you go back. If they ask, just say I’m with a friend.”
She quickly ran into the scorching sun. The high heels she was wearing were block heels, so she was relatively proficient at running in them. However, seeing Jiang Xule turn at a certain intersection, she grew anxious.
She picked up her pace, but just as she was turning the corner, her high heel stepped on a small stone. Her ankle instantly twisted in one direction.
Pain, pain, pain, pain, pain!
Fang Yize clutched her foot and crouched on the ground, her expression pained as she looked up at the person who was about to walk away. She gathered her strength and shouted her name.
“Jiang Xule!”
Jiang Xule’s footsteps paused. Hearing the voice, she turned back. When she saw Fang Yize’s disheveled state, she stood frozen in place.
She walked quickly to Fang Yize’s side, taking her arm to try and pull her up, not forgetting to ask with concern: “How are you?”
“No, no, no, I can’t stand up!” Fang Yize’s lips curled downward. She looked up at Jiang Xule with a pitiful, aggrieved expression: “Jiang Xule, my foot hurts so much…”
Fortunately, there were no pedestrians on the road; otherwise, staying in such a ridiculous posture would have been beyond embarrassing.
“Who told you to follow me secretly?” The expression on Jiang Xule’s face was not very pleasant—it was gloomy, perhaps partly because she was standing in the shadows.
The dignified daughter of the wealthiest family was actually performing such a brainless act, even going so far as to twist her own ankle.
Even if she had followed her openly, Jiang Xule wouldn’t have done anything to her…
“I didn’t know where your house was, and I was afraid you’d get too far away. In a hurry, I…”
“I’m asking you why you had to follow me secretly.”
Fang Yize simply sat down on the ground, her head hanging low. Jiang Xule inexplicably hallucinated a pair of drooping rabbit ears on her head—aggrieved and cute.
“I was just curious about what your home was like. I was afraid that if I asked if I could come, you wouldn’t agree.”
Why was she afraid? Was it because she thought Jiang Xule would feel inferior because of it?
“It’s nothing special. It’s just like what you see on social media—a rental house that isn’t even as good as your family’s bathroom. It’s sweltering on sunny days, and it leaks wind and rain on rainy days. The sofa was left behind by the previous tenant, and the bed is made of old wooden boards the landlord didn’t want. A random piece of jewelry on your body could cover my living expenses for a year!”
“Are you still curious now? If you want to pity me, there’s no need.”
“I don’t want to pity you!” Fang Yize looked up into Jiang Xule’s eyes. “In the beginning, I liked you because of some external things, but after I got to know you, I felt you were really, really cute!”
…
Fang Yize, do you want to listen to what you are saying yourself?
“Do you know me very well?”
I don’t know, but a one-page profile briefly summarized your first twenty-four years. It’s not pity; it’s heartache.
Does that count as knowing you?
Fang Yize leaned against the wall, trying to stand up, but because she was wearing high heels, it was somewhat difficult. So, she took off the heels from her feet and finally managed to stand up unsteadily.
“We can get to know each other slowly in the future, can’t we?”
Jiang Xule had no intention of listening to her any longer. She turned to leave, but Fang Yize, barefoot and limping, followed her. She looked much more pitiful than Jiang Xule!
“Where is your bodyguard? Have him come and take you away.”
“That wasn’t my bodyguard; he just followed me out temporarily…” Fang Yize pouted, her large eyes misty.
Jiang Xule’s left brain battled her right brain, nearly turning into a mess of porridge to be swallowed down in the chaos. Only then did she abruptly stop her footsteps, turn around, and walk toward Fang Yize.
Without a word, she crouched down in front of Fang Yize.
Fang Yize was startled and instinctively took a step back, her voice trembling slightly: “W-what are you doing?”
“Your foot is like this; can you still walk? I’ll carry you on my back.”
“I’ll only give you three seconds to hesitate—”
Before she could finish, Jiang Xule only felt a weight on her back, slamming the words she was about to say back into her throat. The scent of honey peach fell along with her hair. Her hands crossed beneath Jiang Xule’s neck, obediently waiting for her to stand up.
Jiang Xule took a deep breath, only to find herself surrounded by her fragrance. She felt a bit lightheaded…
It wouldn’t be right to keep crouching like this!
So, she stood up easily, her hands firmly grasping the back of Fang Yize’s knees. She tilted her head and asked the person on her back: “Use your phone to call a taxi.”
“No, your house is close. Go to your house.”
“Am I being too indulgent with you, Fang Yize?”
“Please I beg you”
As soon as Fang Yize started acting spoiled, she wanted to wriggle her body, forgetting she was on Jiang Xule’s back. This commotion nearly made her slip off.
The sudden feeling of stepping into thin air made her grab Jiang Xule tightly.
It was very tight.
Jiang Xule sighed. Fine, fine, who told her to be so good at acting spoiled?
Along the way, Fang Yize was much more apprehensive than Jiang Xule because the deeper they went, the more the environment became unfamiliar, and the gap between this surroundings and the previous Liu Street grew larger.
If she had come at night, Fang Yize might have really been scared.
The smell of rats in the stairwell was still there; Fang Yize smelled it as soon as Jiang Xule entered. It was very pungent. She didn’t dare to make a sound, so she buried her face against Jiang Xule’s neck, revealing only a pair of eyes.
It was very itchy.
Finally, when they reached room 401, Jiang Xule carefully put Fang Yize down, took the key from her pocket, and pushed open the door to the rental house.
Fortunately, the heavy rain last time had washed through her room, and she had taken the opportunity to tidy it up properly; otherwise, it would have been completely unpresentable, let alone for receiving guests.
Although it was very simple, it demonstrated the saying: “A sparrow may be small, but it has all the vital organs.”
Fang Yize hopped into the room on one foot and then placed her shoes at the door. Waiting for Jiang Xule to speak, she then hopped toward the sofa and sat down.
This dark green sofa was not comfortable; it was a bit hard, and the green fabric had mildew spots due to the humidity. The smell wasn’t great either—this was likely where Jiang Xule frequently smoked, and it was already steeped in the scent.
“I have medicine for bruises and injuries here; do you want me to rub some on you?” Jiang Xule fumbled under the TV cabinet for a good while.
“Sure.”
“The smell might be a bit strong.”
“It’s okay.”
After confirming once more that she was willing, Jiang Xule unscrewed the red cap of the medicinal liquid, poured the liquid onto her hands to rub them warm, and then pressed them onto Fang Yize’s ankle.
Fang Yize had been pampered since childhood and didn’t often get injured. The most serious injury she had ever sustained was probably the knife wound on her back back in high school. She hadn’t intended to tell her family, but it came out when she was eighteen and about to hold her coming-of-age ceremony, and Fang Xize picked out a backless gown for her.
Fang Xize went to settle the score with the person who hurt her at school and even wanted to arrange a school transfer for Fang Yize. But if she transferred schools, she would never see Jiang Xule again.
So, she cried and pleaded to stay, even saying something about how the college entrance examination was coming up and that transferring schools now would affect her studies.
Who would have thought that after she finally convinced her family, Jiang Xule left anyway and disappeared for many years.
“What do you want to eat?” Jiang Xule’s question was redundant because she had already picked up a bag of instant noodles and added: “Is instant noodles okay?”
Fang Yize nodded with some excitement: “Yes, yes!”
“Why is everything okay with you?”
“I don’t like green onions. You can’t give me the shallot-flavored ones.”
Jiang Xule gave a helpless chuckle and nodded: “Fine, I won’t give you shallot-flavored ones.”
If it were just Jiang Xule eating, she would have simply soaked them. But because this young lady was sitting in the living room, her life must be very refined, so Jiang Xule set up a flat-bottomed pan.
She fried two eggs and cooked two ham sausages. There were also some leftover frozen wontons from the morning in the fridge, so she boiled those to put in the instant noodles as well.
By this time, the sun had already set. The room was a bit dark without the lights on, and Fang Yize found it inconvenient to get up and turn them on, so only a dim light was lit in the kitchen.
Fang Yize sat upright, turning her head to watch the tall Jiang Xule in the tiny kitchen. The aroma of the instant noodles drifted into her nose.
For some reason, this seemed much more fragrant than the instant noodles she would hastily prepare when she was busy at school.
A small table stood at the kitchen entrance, but there was only one plastic stool. After Jiang Xule brought the two bowls of instant noodles to the table, she tied up her accumulated cardboard boxes with rope to serve as a seat for herself.
The height was just right.
“Eat.” Jiang Xule placed the chopsticks and spoon on Fang Yize’s bowl.
“Thank you!” Fang Yize leaned down and sniffed deeply, a satisfied expression appearing on her face: “It looks so fragrant!”
Fang Yize couldn’t wait to take a bite of the fried egg. The heat for this fried egg was just right—it had the aroma of oil but wasn’t greasy. The edges were slightly crispy, which perfectly enriched the overall texture of the fried egg.
The instant noodles were also cooked for the right amount of time—neither soft nor hard. With the addition of the fresh meat wontons, the noodles gained a lot of meaty flavor. The ham sausages were also fried, making them much more fragrant than eating them raw; one could temporarily ignore their starchy texture.
“So delicious, so delicious! You’re so amazing, Jiang Xule!” Fang Yize was so pleased she stamped her feet; the emotional value was filled to the brim.
Jiang Xule smiled helplessly: “Is it that exaggerated?”
“Really! It’s completely at the level where you could open a shop.”
“Are you silly? Who would go out to buy processed instant noodles when they cost only a few yuan? The price would be several times higher.”
Fang Yize disagreed with this idea and retorted: “Lately, you can see instant noodle stalls online—things like Fire Chicken noodles, Shin Ramyun, Korean kimchi-flavored instant noodles, all kinds of flavors!”
“Placing an instant noodle pot on an induction cooker at a small stall and processing it a bit, the price can double or triple. It’s very profitable!”
“Are you seeing that I’ve lost my job yet again, so you want to point out a clear path for me? But doing these things looks simple, yet the preliminary preparation work is actually very complicated. It even requires a lot of startup capital, and the margin for error isn’t high,” Jiang Xule said.
Fang Yize reached up to brush the hair by her ear and looked down, saying: “I’m just saying… of course, whether you do it or not is up to you… and of course, if you become my girlfriend, you don’t have to worry about the margin for error.”
The small room suddenly fell into silence. Dinner time was the peak period for neighbors to argue. Usually, they were only idle during meals. Once they were idle, they would discuss things, such as those related to money, and they would start clashing at the slightest disagreement.
So, after the room grew quiet, the sounds of arguing could be heard very clearly, followed by the sound of a child’s crying.
This wasn’t even the most desperate part. The most desperate part was when the arguing started in the middle of the night when it was time to sleep—it was practically a daily staple.
Jiang Xule appeared to be eating her noodles with her head down, but she was actually considering the issue Fang Yize had raised. To prevent the contents of those arguments—where people added all sorts of foul language—from polluting Fang Yize’s ears, she casually replied.
“If you want me to be with you, unless you crush me to death with money.”
Hearing this, Fang Yize paused, thinking: Is Jiang Xule actually this easy to pursue?!
She immediately grabbed her phone from the sofa behind her. After a flurry of operations, she showed Jiang Xule the digits of an Alipay transfer.
At the same time, a crisp notification sound rang out from the phone by Jiang Xule’s hand: “Alipay receipt, one million yuan.”
This sound was as pleasant as the gurgling of a mountain stream, as beautiful as a bird’s song on a branch. Every word was melodious and lingering, with an exquisite resonance!