The bomb hit Jiang Yan so hard that his gaping mouth could have stuffed a duck egg inside.
Mo Wenyang strolled up behind him and patted his back, “Are you good now?
Jun Ye’s people are getting suspicious.”
Opening his hand, Jiang Yan just glared at him, “He’s allowed to abduct a wife, but I’m not allowed to abduct one, is that it?”
As the victim of this miserable situation, Mo Wenyang, feeling like a good Samaritan bitten by a dog, said, “You’re now separated by distance, what’s the rush?
If you want to visit her, you’d need to find a long vacation first.”
“What separation by distance?
She’s already in Beijing!” By the end of his sentence, Jiang Yan mimicked Manman’s showoff attitude.
This bombshell similarly stunned Mo Wenyang, with his hair standing on end in shock, “She’s in Beijing?
How did she get to Beijing?
Not even Doraemon’s Anywhere Door is that fast.”
In short, Manman’s sudden arrival in Beijing was too bizarre.
Could it be that she knew Mr.
and Mrs.
Jiang had rejected her as their future daughter-in-law?
Having heard from Du Yu about their plan to come to Beijing to seek opportunities, Jiang Yan wasn’t surprised by Manman’s sudden appearance.
He quickly memorized her address, kissed the paper fiercely, and said, “Manman, wait for me, I’ll come see you right away.”
Without much thought, Mo Wenyang reached out to stop him urgently, “Yan Ge, listen to me, you can’t just leave like this.”
His eyebrows arched, his large hand looped around Mo Wenyang’s shoulder and then gave a punch to his stomach, Jiang Yan was blunt, “I’ve been meaning to ask you, are you hiding something from me?
Let me tell you, I have no mercy for traitors!”
Feeling the harsh blow, Mo Wenyang’s face stretched in pain, “Yes, it’s my fault.”
“Speak!”
“Your parents went to the Wen Family, they met Manman’s mother.”
After confessing everything honestly, Mo Wenyang was fearful as he carefully glanced up at the stoic face of young master Jiang.
Jiang Yan’s face was as dark as the sky before a thunderstorm.
Despite his casual demeanor usually, Jiang Yan had risen in rank faster than his contemporaries in the military, and as a favored figure in front of military leaders, he was no simple character.
He didn’t forget the contemptuous looks he had received from everyone in the Wen Family, including Xu Yu’e, a sinister, cold smile curling from his arrogant lips, “I thought it was something serious; this is nothing.”
Listening to his tone, Mo Wenyang felt scared, “What do you mean?
Are you still going to see Manman?”
“Of course, I am going.” Folding the address and slipping it into his pocket, Jiang Yan walked to the curbside to hail a taxi.
A taxi pulled up in front of the Department Store, and a young military officer stepped out from the back seat.
Jiang Yan rushed over to pull open the door.
Following him, Mo Wenyang saw the young officer and was startled, “Colonel Yao?”
Yao Ziye’s narrow eyes squinted, “You know me?”
Who wouldn’t recognize him?
In this class there were only two ‘big shots’, one being Jun Ye, the other being Yao Ye, and they were always inseparable.
It was said their families had been close for generations.
“We’re in the same class,” said Mo Wenyang.
“Oh,” responded Yao Ziye casually, focusing on Jiang Yan who was in a hurry to get into the car, “He’s leaving, aren’t you going with him?”
“Sorry, it’s an emergency,” Mo Wenyang apologized.
Yao Ziye courteously made room for him.
Mo Wenyang hurriedly climbed into the back seat of the taxi.
As the taxi drove away, Yao Ziye turned his military cap and strode into the building.
He found Lu Jun’s figure in front of Zhou Dafu’s counter and approached him curiously, “Weren’t a bunch of people supposed to come with you?”
Lu Jun had already gone for a stroll alone, smiling indifferently, “They all use my name to go out and have fun.
Why should I let them go so I can watch them trailing behind me with their miserable wifey faces?”
“This way we have some peace and quiet,” Yao Ziye stood by his side, looking down at what he was picking out.
Inside the glass cabinet, a dazzling array of women’s bracelets, with gold, silver, and jade.
The salesperson behind the cabinet, smiling at them with a friendly face, talked nonstop, adept at pitching, “We are running a promotion right now.
For every thousand spent, you get a pure gold one thrown in, with no upper limit.
Comrades, are you buying to wish the elderly a long life, or for your girlfriend’s birthday?
Just tell me, and I’ll help you with suggestions.”
Yao Ziye’s eyes, with a hint of slyness, smiled, “Can’t buy one for a sister?”
The salesperson paused momentarily before reacting, “Of course, that’s possible.
We have designs specifically for female students, both stylish and trendy.
Most importantly, they hold their value after purchase.”
Yao Ziye smiled and let her carry on, then turned to Lu Jun, “You bought Bai Lu’s gift yet?”
“Why would I buy her something?
It’s not the first or second time we are on a mission,” Lu Jun’s response was as expected, “However, she did call me and asked if she should prepare a first-time meeting gift in case she meets Nannan this time.”
“How did you respond to her?”
“I said, since we can’t be sure if it’s really Nannan or not, let’s hold off on the gift,” Lu Jun said with a tone cold enough to reveal a hint of cruelty.
Nannan was Lu Jun’s sister, who had been missing for over twenty years.
Originally, the Lu Family had vigorously searched for their precious daughter.
In a short amount of time, countless people came to the Lu Family, claiming to be Nannan, which let the Lu Family experience a roller coaster of hope, disappointment, and anger.
Eventually, the Lu Family chose to keep the search private, only looking for her in secret, which proved to be quite effective.
Now, every Nannan that made it to the Lu Family for verification came with credible evidence.
Although Lu Jun spoke in such a detached manner, deep down, he truly hoped to find his sister this time.
That’s why, before heading home, he couldn’t help but rush to the Department Store, wanting to buy something.
“I won’t go meet her with you first this time,” Yao Ziye said softly.
The Yao and Lu families had been friends for generations, and their children always played together.
Yao Ziye and Lu Jun were the last to see Nannan before she disappeared.
Even though they were very young at the time, that incident left an indelible pain in their hearts.
It was their idea of fun that led to Nannan’s disappearance.
Of course, since they were too young to understand, the adults never blamed them, but they both felt it was their lifelong responsibility.
Lu Jun looked at him, “What do you mean?”
Ever since they came back from their mission, Yao Ziye had a lot on his mind, all of which Lu Jun noticed.
“This is what I wanted to discuss with you before,” Yao Ziye spoke up with difficulty, “When we were kids, when we pressed Nannan’s palm, didn’t a plum blossom appear?”
“What are you getting at?”
“The woman you picked up that day, the one who gave you five hundred yuan, I pressed her palm that night, and a plum blossom appeared just like before.”
Lu Jun was stunned for a moment, then said, “That doesn’t confirm anything—”
Even though he said this, Lu Jun knew that his sister’s unique trait wasn’t something others could easily learn, and he couldn’t help but share Yao Ziye’s doubt: the sister about to stand before him, was she truly Nannan?
— “The Late Hours of a Grand Wedding” —
After receiving the call from Jiang Yan, Manman remembered to check the time and saw it was nearly noon.
Figuring he must be hungry if he was coming over, she decided to go to the nearby market to buy some groceries.
“What’s up?” Chun Xia asked.
They had just moved things into the gallery these past few days and had been so busy that their meals were all takeout boxes from food stalls, with no time to cook themselves.
Worried about her recurring stomach issues, Chun Xia asked, “Was it something you ate that was unclean?”
“No.
It’s because he’s coming,” Manman said softly.
“He?”
“Jiang Yan.”
Chun Xia and Du Yu looked at each other, and both jumped up with a “wow.” It seemed their hard work as matchmakers was paying off, and it was worth it!