The hair dryer buzzed softly, the man’s fingertips, slightly rough with thin calluses, threading through her hair as he tousled and separated the strands.
Jiang Fuyue sat on the dressing stool, so comfortable she half-closed her eyes.
She almost fell asleep.
“…All done.”
Jiang Fuyue handed the comb to him again.
Xie Dingyuan took it and, as naturally as could be, began combing her hair for her.
From the initial awkward nervousness to his current ease and composure, he was like a good student, learning bit by bit how to treat her well.
Suddenly, a phone rang,
Xie Dingyuan handed it over. “Yours.”
Jiang Fuyue glanced at it. Her biological father was calling.
Usually Jiang Da rarely called her alone; most of the time he would just chime in with a few words while she was chatting with Han Yunru.
“Hello, Dad.”
“Yueyue, you didn’t come home last night?”
Here it comes!
Jiang Fuyue glanced at Xie Dingyuan, who looked guilty.
Her tone remained unchanged as she calmly said, “Oh, Professor Xie was so drunk yesterday he’d fall over after walking two steps. I was afraid something might happen to him, so I stayed and watched over him the whole night. I only dozed off a bit this morning and just woke up.”
Jiang Da let out a light sigh of relief.
“So drunk he’d fall after two steps” meant he was already completely smashed, then he definitely couldn’t do anything bad.
“Then are you coming home for dinner tonight?”
Jiang Fuyue glanced at Xie Dingyuan. He shook his head at her: Don’t go, stay.
“I won’t go back. I have something to take care of later.”
“Alright then, go ahead and be busy. Your mom and I will head back to Linhuai the day after tomorrow.”
“Okay, then tomorrow I’ll take you two out for a stroll.”
Jiang Da responded with an “Eh,” immediately beaming with delight.
“Alright then, that’s it. I’m hanging up, Dad.”
“Okay, okay, okay…”
The call ended, and Jiang Fuyue put her phone away.
Xie Dingyuan felt a bit awkward, he wanted to ask something but felt too embarrassed to open his mouth.
Jiang Fuyue looked at him with amusement. “What are you nervous about? We’re so far apart, can my dad crawl through the phone and eat you?”
Xie Dingyuan: “…Cough!”
Having done something bad, of course he felt guilty.
For more than twenty years before this, Xie Dingyuan could say he had always practiced what he preached and followed the rules. Only after meeting Jiang Fuyue had he broken them.
“You were sent by heaven specifically to deal with me!” he said through clenched teeth, both loving and resentful.
Though he said that, his actions were very honest. He pulled Jiang Fuyue into his arms, hugging and clinging to her~
Xie Dingyuan had never imagined that one day he would become this clingy.
…
At the same time, at the Han residence.
Jiang Da put down the phone. Han Yunru glanced at him. “Did you ask clearly?”
“Yeah. He was drunk pretty badly. Yueyue watched over him all night and only dozed off this morning.”
“See? I told you Yueyue knows her limits. You insisted on calling, she was probably just asleep and you woke her up.”
Jiang Da scratched his head awkwardly. “Wasn’t I just worried our daughter might suffer a loss…”
In this matter he was actually sharper than anyone.
Jiang Da gave a silly grin. “Of course! I’m a man!”
Men understand men best.
Don’t be fooled by how Xie Dingyuan looks upright and honest. Take his clothes off and he’s still a wolf, the howling kind.
“By the way, Yueyue said she’ll take us out tomorrow.”
“Really?!”
Jiang Chenxing leaned over. “I want to go too.”
Han Ting raised his hand. “Auntie, me too!”
“Alright, everyone’s going!”
…
At the apartment, the heating was plentiful. Jiang Fuyue wore a loose shirt that hung empty around her frame; she swayed around without feeling cold at all.
There was still leftover pasta and sauce packets in the refrigerator from last time.
Xie Dingyuan put everything into a pot to cook, then added a plate of boiled broccoli and several kinds of fruit, nutritional intake complete.
Jiang Fuyue walked over to the dining table and saw him writing and drawing on paper. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing… I’m noting down the percentage of trace element intake.”
“You already calculated it?”
Xie Dingyuan nodded. “Mm.”
Jiang Fuyue’s eyes turned slightly. “How about we compete and see who calculates faster?”
“How?”
Jiang Fuyue thought for a moment. “Just say the answer directly and see who’s faster.”
Mainly because she was too lazy to write anything down.
In the first round they both spoke the answer at the same time.
The second round was just as fast.
Third round, fourth round…
After several rounds, they truly couldn’t tell the winner, completely evenly matched.
Both were masters of mental math, with top-tier IQs.
“Let’s stop. Even if we keep going, we won’t get a result.”
The man smiled cheerfully and listened to whatever his wife said. “Alright.”
If you say stop, then we stop.
After the meal, Xie Dingyuan voluntarily went to wash the dishes.
When he finished, he went to the laundry room and took down Jiang Fuyue’s dried clothes.
Jiang Fuyue took them to the bedroom to change, preparing to go home.
Xie Dingyuan: “I’ll take you.”
“Okay.”
He safely drove her to the outside of the Han family villa. Jiang Fuyue got out of the car, and he got out as well.
“What are you doing?”
“Walking you in. I now have officially certified visiting rights.”
He looked rather proud.
Xie Dingyuan escorted her through the garden all the way to the front door.
“Alright, go back early and get some rest.”
The man stood there without moving.
Jiang Fuyue: “Hmm?”
He smiled and pointed to the corner of his mouth. “Goodbye kiss.”
“Have you no shame?”
“As long as there’s a kiss, the face doesn’t matter.” The key point was that he said it with complete seriousness.
Jiang Fuyue: “……”
This person was becoming less and less particular.
Where did your dignity, restraint, pride, and aloofness go?
Xie Dingyuan: “I’ve already put them away completely in front of you.”
Jiang Fuyue stepped onto the stairs, leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pinched his face. “Your skin’s gotten thicker too.”
Xie Dingyuan took the opportunity to support her waist.
Jiang Fuyue lowered her head and placed a kiss on his lips.
The man kissed her back twice, soft and lingering, before finally leaving, completely satisfied.
On the second-floor balcony, with the lights off, two heads leaned together, secretly peeking downward.
Han Ting: “They k-kissed?”
Jiang Chenxing: “What’s the big deal?” Though seeing his sister kiss his brother-in-law still made him feel a little sour inside.
Sigh. Brother-in-law really is the happiest person in the world, to be kissed by his sister.
If Han Ting knew this train of thought, he would probably mock him again for being a “sister-con.”
Yes, after a full day of deep reflection, Han Ting had finally come to a profound realization, Jiang Chenxing was an utterly shameless sister-spoiling maniac!
Even more frightening was that he himself had gradually been dragged down that path bit by bit!
“Hey, Chenxing, do you have a girlfriend?”
Little Brother Jiang’s face instantly flushed bright red. “I’m still young. I can’t date early.”
Han Ting clicked his tongue. What a waste of such a handsome face.
“Then someone you like? Do you have one?”
Jiang Chenxing thought for a moment. “Does my sister and my parents count?”
Han Ting: “Not that kind of like! The kind like Sister Yue and the professor, where you can kiss and cling to each other!”
Little Brother Jiang hurriedly shook his head.
“What about you? Bro, do you have one?”
“Hehe…”
“Oh! You do!”
“Shh, keep your voice down! The class beauty in our class is pretty…”
Under the night sky, in the moonlight, two heads leaned together, endless youthful feelings flowing between them, the years like poetry.
…
“Yueyue’s back? Have you eaten? Mom can make you something,” Han Yunru said, already about to head to the kitchen.
“Mom, I’ve eaten. Where do you and Dad want to go tomorrow?”
Han Yunru: “I’m fine with anything. Ask your dad.”
Jiang Fuyue looked at Jiang Da. The latter thought for a long time before scratching his head. “How about going to climb the Great Wall?”
Han Yunru agreed.
Jiang Fuyue also nodded. “This weather is just right.”
Since they were going out tomorrow, Jiang Fuyue went to rest early that night.
After exchanging goodnight messages with Xie Dingyuan, she went to sleep.
But someone else lay on the big bed in the apartment, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.
As soon as he closed his eyes, the fresh scent of citrus mixed with amber spread through the air, thread by thread, stubbornly slipping into his nose.
Even after changing the bedsheets and opening the windows for ventilation, it refused to dissipate.
In the darkness, Xie Dingyuan smiled bitterly.
Disgusted with himself, he raised an arm and laid it across his eyes, forcing himself to enter a sleeping state.
Unfortunately, twenty minutes later, he still failed.
He sighed resignedly, turned on the bedside lamp, opened a Science journal from last year, and began browsing.
After half an hour of brewing drowsiness, he turned off the light and lay down again, preparing to sleep.
That scent drifted over again…
In the end, he rested his head on the shirt Jiang Fuyue had changed out of, and only then slowly drifted into sleep.
But the dreams were romantic and ambiguous, stirring him restlessly, making the heat difficult to bear.
“Sigh…”
After having tasted meat, going back to eating plain porridge and side dishes is truly hard to endure.
…
The next day Jiang Fuyue got up early.
After breakfast, she took Han Yunru and Jiang Da out, along with the two little tails, Jiang Chenxing and Han Ting.
Han Shen: “Have the driver take you there.”
Han Ke nodded. “You can bring some snacks to eat on the way.”
Originally Han Qishan also wanted to go, but unfortunately the weather had turned colder recently and his leg condition had flared up. He needed acupuncture treatment every day, and the doctor had also instructed him to rest in bed as much as possible.
So Han Yunru did not agree to let him go.
If the one opposing him had been any of the three brothers, Han Shen, Han Ke, or Han Heng, the old master would probably have scolded them harshly already.
But when it was Han Yunru, Han Qishan could only obediently listen.
Not only was he not angry, he was quite happy.
His daughter actually cared about him this much?!
Mm, flattered and delighted.
Regarding this, Han Shen: “…”
Used to it.
Han Ke: “…” Am I unworthy?
Han Heng: “…” Heh heh!
…
In the afternoon, after climbing up the Great Wall, Jiang Da stood on the city wall gazing into the distance at the beacon towers.
Han Yunru leaned against the wall drinking water, casually handing a bottle to each of the two kids.
“I remember the last time I came, it seemed to be more than twenty years ago.” Han Yunru’s gaze drifted as she sank into memories.
At that time, she had not disappeared, nor had she lost her memory. She had parents who doted on her and three older brothers who cherished her, the pampered princess of the Han family.
But later…
Now the scenery remained the same, but people and circumstances had completely changed.
“Yueyue, your dad and I discussed it. We’ve decided to move Jiang Ji to the capital. From now on we’ll settle here.”
Although she knew such a day would come sooner or later, Jiang Fuyue hadn’t expected it to arrive so quickly.
“So suddenly?”
Han Yunru shook her head. “It’s not sudden. Actually, your dad and I had already been considering it before.”
The idea first came when Jiang Fuyue graduated from high school and came to the capital for university.
But at that time Jiang Ji had just begun to achieve some success and gradually gain a reputation. If they rashly moved to an entirely new place, the foundation might not be stable and they might struggle to adapt.
So they decided to wait two more years and consider it again when the time was right.
And now the time had come.
Some time ago, Wu Qian personally came to their door and persuaded them to agree to let Chenxing transfer schools to the capital.
First, the educational resources here were better; second, it would also be more convenient for developing their business.
The couple closed the door and discussed it, and felt that this time they could move.
Han Yunru said, “If nothing unexpected happens, both you and your brother will probably choose to stay in the capital in the future. Sooner or later we’ll settle here anyway. And your grandparents are getting older, I’m too far away in Linhuai to feel at ease.”
Jiang Fuyue nodded. In fact, Han Yunru had already thought everything through very thoroughly, except…
“What does Dad think?”
After all, Linhuai was where Jiang Da came from, and the entire Jiang family lived there.
Was he willing to follow his wife to live in the capital?
Han Yunru curled her lips, her brows relaxing. “Don’t you know your dad? He listens to me. Actually, two months ago we already asked an agent here to help look for a storefront. We just haven’t found a suitable one yet.”
…
After walking around all day, everyone was tired. Once they returned home, they each went to rest.
The next day, Han Yunru and Jiang Da returned to Linhuai. Jiang Fuyue offered to send them to the airport.
Just then Xie Dingyuan happened to come over to see her, so he took over the role of driver and the two of them went together to send them off.
When they were leaving, Han Qishan looked at his daughter with an expression full of reluctance.
“Dad, we’ll come again very soon.”
The old man didn’t understand. He thought it simply meant they would find time to fly to the capital to see him, so he repeatedly agreed.
But in his heart he actually knew, how could people in the restaurant business have so much free time to keep flying back and forth?
It was just a casual sentence meant to comfort him.
But on second thought, the fact that his daughter was willing to put thought into comforting him was already something worth being happy about.
At the airport, Xie Dingyuan and Jiang Fuyue stood outside the security checkpoint, watching the two of them leave.
“From what Auntie said just now, it sounds like they’re planning to move to the capital?”
Jiang Fuyue raised an eyebrow. He was quite perceptive. “They do have that plan.”
“Have you discussed it already?”
“Mm. My dad agreed too.”
Xie Dingyuan muttered quietly, “Then shouldn’t I speed things up a bit?”
“What speed?”
“Huanqing is currently undergoing a business division split. I plan to move the most core part and the entire research team to the capital, while leaving the processing factory and production lines in Linhuai.”
Jiang Fuyue remembered he had mentioned before about transferring part of the business to the capital. “…It’s still not finished?”
Xie Dingyuan shook his head. “The base is too large, with complicated entanglements. It will still take some time.”
“Yueyue…”
“Mm.”
“I’ve already met your parents. Shouldn’t you find some time to go back with me too? Hmm?” The upward lilt at the end of his sentence was inexplicably sexy.
Jiang Fuyue blinked. “Weren’t we talking about splitting the business? How did it turn into meeting parents?”
Xie Dingyuan: “Ahem! Just speaking from the feeling. You’re not scared, are you?”
“Me? Scared?” Jiang Fuyue immediately straightened up, her eyes full of disdain. “You must be joking, okay?!”
“Then I’ll take it as you agreed.”
“?” Why does this feel like I got tricked?
…
After her birthday, Jiang Fuyue returned to the laboratory and resumed intense work.
In the blink of an eye, December reached its end.
New Year’s Day arrived.
She went home for a meal and rested for a night. The next day she said she was going to the lab, but actually ran to Xie Dingyuan’s apartment.
A man who has tasted meat becomes very greedy, and very clingy.
As long as you’re there, he’s basically in a state of howling hunger, constantly acting spoiled, begging for closeness, asking for cuddles, and the final result is usually,
His schemes succeed.
So after staying for a period of time, she returned to the school again.
And the most dissatisfied person was probably Professor Xie.
Want to show your support? Go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)
