Volume 1 Chapter 9: Borrowing Flowers to Offer to Buddha
After these words fell, the office fell silent for a long moment.
Li Minglan re-examined Jiang Song, “Girlfriend?”
Back in their school days, Jiang Song was famously known as a playboy, with his highest record being eight girlfriends in one week.
Until Shen Zhizhi appeared, and then Shen Zhizhi went abroad.
No other girls had appeared by Jiang Song’s side since then.
At this moment, sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the dust particles in the air, and the atmosphere grew quiet for a moment.
Jiang Song smiled, breaking the silence, “Girlfriend? You could say that.”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier? Which family’s daughter is she?”
“You know her too.”
Li Minglan was even more surprised, “Who is it? When did you two get together? I haven’t seen you bring her out before.”
Jiang Song said meaningfully, “She’s timid, like a cat, afraid of strangers. Without me protecting her, she wouldn’t even know how to fight back if she were bullied.”
This didn’t sound like a description of a girlfriend, but more like a pet.
Li Minglan: “Are you serious, or…”
“Just playing around.” Jiang Song casually tossed the doll aside, “So, what did you come to me for? I have a date tonight.”
Li Minglan composed himself and said thoughtfully, “Zhizhi has returned to the country.”
“Hmm, I know.”
Li Minglan took out a stack of documents, “In domestic research institutes, seniority matters. Zhizhi is young, and I don’t want her to always be overshadowed. I want to build a separate laboratory for her so she can focus on her research and achieve her dreams.”
“And so?”
“My family’s old man has never liked Shen Zhizhi, and investing in a laboratory is no small expense. I haven’t officially taken over the Li family yet, so I don’t have enough cash flow on hand. That’s why I wanted to ask for your help.”
“How much more do you need?”
“50 million.”
Half a small goal.
Not too much, but not easy to gather in a short time either.
Jiang Song turned serious, “I’ll figure something out.”
As soon as Ruan Wan returned to the editorial department, she was surrounded by her colleagues.
“Team Leader Ruan, did you really invite Young Master Jiang?”
“By the way, he took your keychain and said you should go find him.”
“Hey, is this it? You already got it back?”
“…”
Voices rose and fell, and Ruan Wan didn’t know who to answer first, so she simply held up the osmanthus cake to temporarily divert the attention.
Gao Yue walked over disdainfully, hinting at something, “Ruan Wan, sooner or later, I’ll let Young Master Jiang know your true colors.”
Ruan Wan bit into the osmanthus cake, not even looking up, “Yeah, right. My true colors are his dad.”
Gao Yue: “”
Pfft!
Li Jing couldn’t hold back and laughed.
The others stopped holding back too.
Laughter rose and fell, and Gao Yue was left embarrassed, grinding her teeth in anger. Pointing at Ruan Wan, she left with a parting shot, “You just wait,” before slamming the door and leaving.
When it was time to get off work, Ruan Wan stood by the roadside, debating whether to take a taxi or the subway.
While hesitating, a clear, youthful voice called out, “Sister, over here!”
Following the sound, she saw the rear window of a black car roll down, and a young man with light golden hair waved at her.
He wore a pair of white headphones around his neck and a loose gray-pink hoodie. The sunset bathed his brows and eyes, and his tea-colored pupils reflected a golden light, beautiful and dazzling.
“Su Tongan? What are you doing here?”
The young man opened his deer-like eyes, clinging to the car window like a puppy who had done something wrong, and said pitifully, “Sister, your license plate is restricted today, so I came to pick you up for dinner.”
One month ago.
Ruan Wan had hit a pedestrian with her car.
That person was Su Tongan. He fainted on the spot and remained unconscious. Since getting her driver’s license at 18, Ruan Wan had never been in an accident. She immediately called an ambulance and sent him to the hospital.
After a series of examinations, it turned out he wasn’t seriously injured—just minor scrapes and bruises.
As for fainting, it was due to stomach issues caused by his irregular eating habits—he had passed out from the pain.
Ruan Wan: “…”
The hospital couldn’t reach the young man’s family. Out of guilt, Ruan Wan made nourishing soup and brought it to him to help him recover.
From then on, Young Master Su had latched onto her.
“You hit me, so you have to take responsibility. At the very least, you need to observe me for a month to see if any aftereffects appear.”
“But don’t worry, I’ll pay you.”
“My family is busy and doesn’t have time for me. Just keep me company, okay…”
The young man was like a proud, beautiful cat, gradually revealing his soft belly, making it hard not to soften toward him.
If Ruan Wan hadn’t awakened to the plot and known that Su Tongan had deliberately caused the accident to get close to her—all to fulfill Shen Zhizhi’s love story—she might have been fooled by his innocent, college-boy appearance.
At this moment.
Ruan Wan politely declined Su Tongan’s offer of a ride.
“Xiao An, the month is up. You haven’t shown any aftereffects, so I’m relieved. I have plans today, so I won’t be keeping you company.”
Hearing this, Su Tongan’s pretty face fell.
“But today… today is my birthday.”
“Sister, you didn’t forget my birthday, did you?”
His disappointed tone pulled her attention back.
“Of course not.” Ruan Wan’s gaze softened as she took out the Capybara that Jiang Song had made by hand and gave it to Su Tongan. “Happy birthday, Xiao An.”
Su Tongan was stunned.
This felted animal… was ugly. It was hard to even tell what kind of animal it was, with its crooked mouth and slanted eyes.
“It’s handmade, so it’s not very pretty. If you don’t like it, forget it.” Ruan Wan started to pull her hand back.
Su Tongan’s eyes lit up. “This was made by hand?”
“No.” Ruan Wan was sincere.
But Su Tongan interpreted it as: Ruan Wan thought this little thing was too ugly and was deliberately distancing herself from it.
He smiled and snatched the gift. “This mouse is very cute. I’ll carry it with me all the time.”
Ruan Wan corrected him, “First of all, this is a capybara.”
Su Tongan: “…”
He cleverly changed the subject. “I remember Sister also has a Capybara keychain. Is this a matching couple’s item?”
Ruan Wan didn’t answer.
‘It is indeed a couple’s item, but it’s yours and Jiang Song’s,’ she thought to herself.
Her silence was taken as confirmation. Su Tongan was in a good mood and also took out a gift.
“I have something for Sister too.”
He opened the box to reveal a white scarf inside. “Last time, I couldn’t celebrate Sister’s birthday with you, and I couldn’t give you a gift either… This is a scarf I knitted myself. Do you like it, Sister?”
The scarf’s stitches were loose and uneven, with a few mistakes here and there.
Ruan Wan pretended to be pleasantly surprised. “Thank you, I like it very much.”
In reality, not long ago, she had given Li Minglan an identical scarf, also claiming she had knitted it herself.
But all you had to do was open an online shopping app, search for [“hand-knitted scarf + fooling your girlfriend + beginner”], and you could buy one.
39.9 yuan, shipping included.
In the blink of an eye, the black car arrived at Eastern Corner Manor.
This century-old establishment has been favored by the upper class since the Republican era, with every brick and tile exuding a retro elegance. The stained glass, especially when illuminated by the sunset, makes one feel as if they’ve stepped into medieval Europe.
Su Tongan had informed the manager in advance, allowing Ruan Wan to smoothly make her way to the back kitchen.
Along the way, she stopped by Jiang Song’s private room.
As soon as they met, Ruan Wan took out a white hand-knitted scarf with misplaced and dropped stitches and handed it over.
Jiang Song raised an eyebrow. “What’s this?”
Ruan Wan replied sincerely, “A thank-you gift for the ride at noon.”