Jiang Ning was taken aback for a moment, responding with a slow “Oh,” before sluggishly moving to open the door for Xi Yue.
As soon as the door opened, Xi Yue strode in with a dark expression.
Then, as if entering his own home, he tossed his phone aside, rummaged through the cabinets with practiced ease to pull out a pair of men’s slippers, put them on, and walked straight inside.
He even casually hung his coat on the rack in the entryway.
Jiang Ning watched his seamless series of actions with an indifferent expression.
Xi Yue was more familiar with the room’s layout than she was, even though she had lived there for quite some time.
Xi Yue spoke without waiting for her response. “Don’t save the number I just called you from. That’s my manager’s phone. My number is still the same one—just take me off your blacklist.”
Jiang Ning wanted to say, “I never planned to save it,” but Xi Yue didn’t give her a chance to speak, cutting straight to the point.
“The internet says we’re dating. How do you plan to handle it?”
Jiang Ning could only reply, “Just clarify it.”
Xi Yue: “Photos of me carrying you into the hotel have already been leaked. If we clarify that there’s nothing between us, it’ll just look like you’re trying to ride on my fame.”
Jiang Ning: “It’s fine. I don’t go online anyway.”
Her reaction was calmer than Xi Yue had expected, almost to the point of being unyielding.
Xi Yue’s expression had grown even darker than when he first entered.
If anyone else had seen the look on Xi Yue’s face, they would have likely been frightened into self-reflection, wondering how they had offended him.
But Jiang Ning had seen every expression Xi Yue could make. In his youth, he had been even more rebellious than he was now—a true troublemaker, exuding an air of “life and death mean nothing, just fight if you disagree.”
Xi Yue: “Do you not care at all about what others think of you?”
Jiang Ning replied calmly, “Even if I cared, it wouldn’t stop people from gossiping about me behind my back.”
Xi Yue: “So, just like with this scandal, you didn’t bother to clarify the rumors about you in Hong Kong either?”
Jiang Ning: “They were all true. There was no need to clarify.”
Standing this close, even the individual lashes of Jiang Ning’s downcast eyes were clearly visible.
Xi Yue looked at her, always so unruffled no matter the situation, and let out a mocking laugh.
“You just don’t care about people who don’t matter to you.”
After saying this, he stood up, grabbed his coat, and prepared to leave.
His retreating figure felt all too familiar to Jiang Ning.
She remembered the scene when Xi Yue had begged her not to break up.
After realizing Jiang Ning wasn’t breaking up on a whim, Xi Yue had even stumbled over his words: “Did I do something to upset you? I’ll change, I promise I’ll change… Please don’t break up.”
If possible, she would have preferred a peaceful breakup or for Xi Yue’s feelings to gradually fade, allowing them to go their separate ways like most young couples after college.
She really hadn’t wanted to break up when Xi Yue loved her the most.
In the room.
Jiang Ning watched Xi Yue’s retreating figure and suddenly said softly, “Actually, the year I was with you was the happiest time of my life.”
She could see Xi Yue pause for a moment, but he didn’t turn back, leaving directly.
His movements seemed oddly hurried, as if walking too slowly would let something uncontrollable slip out.
…
The facts proved that Jiang Ning should not have softened her heart, thinking Xi Yue was too pitiful at that moment, and subconsciously spoke those heartfelt words.
Because Xi Yue truly knew how to push his luck.
Early the next morning, just as Jiang Ning yawned and walked out of her bedroom, she heard the door lock click open from the outside.
Jiang Ning almost grabbed the vase beside her.
Then she saw Xi Yue swaggering in with a key card.
He was carrying a bunch of random ingredients and, ignoring Jiang Ning’s incredulous gaze, stuffed them into her fridge as if moving in.
While stuffing, he even complained to Jiang Ning: “Why haven’t you eaten the snacks I left for you? Why did you buy junk food again? I’m throwing it all away, you hear me?”
He nagged like an old mother.
Jiang Ning finally managed to squeeze in a sentence amidst his endless chatter.
“…How did you open my room door?”
“Oh, this.” Xi Yue replied calmly: “The acquisition process was just completed yesterday, and I took the opportunity to upgrade the hotel’s room security. The key card you have is no longer usable. I have the new one here.”
He spoke as casually as if he had just bought a basket of groceries from the market.
Jiang Ning: “…”
She was in agony.
She really wanted to stay away from Xi Yue.
But in just a few encounters, Xi Yue had already evolved to the point where he could openly walk into her room.
If Jiang Jintao hadn’t forced her to come back, she should have stayed in the U.S. until she died of old age.
Xi Yue even made his way into the kitchen and found the apron she had been searching for for days: “I cooked millet porridge at my place. Go freshen up first, and we can heat it up to eat later.”
Jiang Ning simply didn’t know what to say.
She emphasized again: “This is my room.”
From the kitchen came Xi Yue’s voice: “Do you want meat-filled buns or vegetable-filled ones?”
Jiang Ning: “…”