Chapter 79
Jiang Siyi was a master at pushing her luck.
Her mood had improved after being coaxed, but she still pretended to cry.
“Then… will you take care of me forever?”
Shen Shiwu looked at her teary eyes, then, after a long moment, she looked away and mumbled an “Mm-hmm.”
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm?
Jiang Siyi’s eyelashes, wet with tears, glistened in the light. She leaned closer, like a koala climbing a tree. “I didn’t hear you, say it again.”
Shen Shiwu tapped her head lightly.
A playful glint in her eyes, she teased, “If you didn’t hear me, then it doesn’t count.”
“No way.” Jiang Siyi practically clung to her, her voice softening. “…Okay, fine, I heard you.”
“Then get up.”
Jiang Siyi whined, still clinging to her. “Why?”
She hadn’t had enough cuddles yet.
Shen Shiwu flicked her forehead lightly.
It didn’t hurt, but Jiang Siyi still pretended to be in pain, hissing dramatically.
Shen Shiwu had already stood up, and she looked down at her, sighing almost imperceptibly. “It’s past seven, aren’t you hungry?”
“I’ll take you to dinner.”
***
Chang’an was a quintessential Jiangnan water town. Although not a first-tier city, its tourism industry had boomed in recent years, and at night, it was even livelier than Beicheng.
The sounds of electric scooters and supermarket advertisements filled the air. Jiang Siyi stood by the roadside, looking around for Shen Shiwu.
She nibbled on a candied strawberry, grumbling, “Why isn’t she here yet? Is it that difficult to find parking around here…?”
She had almost finished her snack, but Shen Shiwu was still nowhere in sight. After her experience of getting lost earlier, Jiang Siyi didn’t dare to wander off and look for her.
So she took out her phone and sent a voice message: “Shen Shiwu—”
“You’re so slow, I’m starving.”
Satisfied with her barrage of messages, seeing the green chat bubbles on her screen, Jiang Siyi put away her phone. Taking another bite of her strawberry, she looked towards a nearby street corner and narrowed her eyes.
Wait a minute.
That familiar figure.
Seriously, Shen Shiwu? After all this time, she was chatting with a girl?
Jiang Siyi’s expression turned resentful.
She tiptoed, trying to eavesdrop, and discreetly followed them, blending into the crowd.
Finally, she hid behind a nearby camphor tree.
Shen Shiwu was being approached by two girls. One of them, a girl with brown hair, said timidly, “Hello, if you scan this QR code and add us on WeChat, you can get a free rose.”
Shen Shiwu, hands in her pockets, her expression indifferent, politely declined. “No, thank you.”
Just as she said this, a head popped out from behind the tree. Jiang Siyi, her eyes wide, was staring at them.
Shen Shiwu, unable to resist, smiled faintly.
The girl with brown hair, seeing that her plan had failed, was about to leave with her friend when Shen Shiwu suddenly spoke, “I don’t need to scan the code, I’ll just buy the flowers, is that okay?”
She scanned the code?
Jiang Siyi’s eyes widened.
She scratched at the tree bark, then, unable to resist her curiosity, she peeked out again.
Roses.
She accepted them?
Jiang Siyi’s mind went blank, and she silently cursed Shen Shiwu ninety-nine times. Just as she was about to curse her for the hundredth time, a figure approached.
“Shen Shiwu, you heartless…”
Something lightly touched the top of her head.
Under the flickering streetlight, a long shadow fell over her.
Her words died in her throat.
Jiang Siyi stiffly turned around and forced a smile. “Ah, you’re here.”
Seeing Shen Shiwu’s posture, she wondered—Why was her hand raised so high?
Was she about to karate chop her head?
But a few seconds later, Shen Shiwu plucked a withered leaf from the tree. She played with it between her fingers, the sound crisp and clear.
Looking at Jiang Siyi’s slightly guilty expression, she suppressed a smile and asked calmly, “What are you doing hiding here?”
“I wasn’t hiding.”
“Tell the truth.”
This conversation reminded Jiang Siyi of her high school days, when she had been under Shen Shiwu’s control. She looked away, but Shen Shiwu gently turned her face back, her hand on her cheek.
There was no escape.
Jiang Siyi sighed inwardly, then closed her eyes and blurted out, “I was spying on you.”
Shen Shiwu nodded. “And what were you muttering earlier?”
“…Cursing you.”
Jiang Siyi opened her eyes, her lips pouting slightly, her voice filled with grievance. “Someone asked for your contact information again, didn’t they? And… you gave it to them this time.”
“Where are the flowers? Don’t hide them, those beautiful roses.”
Jiang Siyi’s jealousy manifested in two extremes.
Either she bottled it up inside, not saying a word, or she exploded, her words like fireworks.
“That girl’s hair color is so pretty, and she’s dressed so cute,” Jiang Siyi lowered her eyes, her voice softening slightly, “she’s a good match for you.”
Shen Shiwu shook her head helplessly, her arms crossed, patiently waiting for her to finish.
A few minutes later, Jiang Siyi finally stopped talking, her throat dry, her stomach rumbling.
“Finished?” Shen Shiwu raised an eyebrow.
“Mm-hmm.”
Seeing her calm expression, Jiang Siyi gritted her teeth and turned to leave.
But her head was patted gently.
Jiang Siyi paused, then reluctantly turned around, glaring at Shen Shiwu. “What?”
Three roses appeared in her view.
Held in Shen Shiwu’s long, slender fingers.
“I scanned the code to pay, I bought the flowers,” Shen Shiwu said concisely, her gaze softening as she watched Jiang Siyi’s expression, “three roses, because that’s all she had.”
Those simple words, explaining everything clearly, made Jiang Siyi’s heart race.
Shen Shiwu was explaining herself to her.
Explaining herself to her ex-girlfriend, what did that mean?
It meant they were about to get back together.
Jiang Siyi, her spirits lifted, reached for the flowers. “Okay…”
But before she could touch them, Shen Shiwu pulled her hand back, hiding the flowers behind her back again. “But I’m sorry,”
“These are for me.”
With that, a smile playing on her lips, she ignored Jiang Siyi’s resentful gaze and walked away.
Jiang Siyi’s hand was still outstretched.
She scoffed inwardly, her teeth itching.
“Not coming?” Shen Shiwu, after teasing her, afraid she was hungry, turned around and reminded her, “I’ve already booked a private room at the restaurant.”
Coming, of course she was coming.
Just wait and see, she would eat Shen Shiwu out of house and home tonight.
Jiang Siyi, determined, met Shen Shiwu’s gaze and smiled. “Coming.”
A meal costing tens of thousands of yuan, even Jiang Siyi, now financially independent and earning a decent income, wouldn’t spend that much. But Shen Shiwu didn’t even bat an eye.
She even said,
“Don’t worry about saving money for me,” Shen Shiwu said casually, tapping the table with her finger, “order whatever you want, your ex-girlfriend isn’t that poor.”
Jiang Siyi’s lips twitched.
“What about alcohol? Can I order some?” She was ready to unleash her ultimate move.
Shen Shiwu hesitated for a few seconds, then, thinking that she was there and nothing bad would happen even if Jiang Siyi got drunk, she nodded. “Whatever you want.”
“Hello, a bottle of Romanée-Conti, please.”
“Certainly, ma’am.”
After the waiter left, they were alone in the VIP room.
That was a 200,000 yuan bottle of wine.
Jiang Siyi, her plan working, smiled smugly.
Heh, that’s what you get for messing with me.
Shen Shiwu was looking at her phone, and noticing Jiang Siyi’s expression from the corner of her eye, she looked up.
Jiang Siyi coughed a few times and quickly composed herself, pretending to be calm.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” Shen Shiwu said suddenly.
“What?”
“The show has been suspended.”
Jiang Siyi had only taken on the show for the 90,000 yuan.
The producer’s offer had been too good to refuse.
So now, hearing that the show had been suspended, she didn’t even ask for the reason, her first reaction being, “What about my pay? They’re not going to run off with it, are they?”
Seeing her mercenary nature, Shen Shiwu chuckled softly. “No.”
Seeing her smile, Jiang Siyi cleared her throat, wanting to save face. “It’s not that I’m greedy for money, it’s, it’s what I deserve.”
“I filmed for a whole day, even though I got lost…”
Her voice trailed off, and she lowered her head. “Forget it, it’s fine if they don’t pay me.”
“The producer said they’ll transfer the 90,000 yuan to your account tomorrow,” Shen Shiwu said calmly.
“90,000? That much? Isn’t that a bit too much?” Jiang Siyi was surprised, but she still tried to be modest.
“Too much? Then I’ll tell them 10,000 is enough.”
“…No way.”
Jiang Siyi blurted out, then, feeling embarrassed, she added, “We have to respect their decision, don’t interfere.”
Just then, the waiter knocked on the door and entered with their food. The conversation was conveniently interrupted, and Jiang Siyi, satisfied, turned to the waiter, her voice sweet. “Where’s my wine?”
“Here you go, ma’am,” another waiter carefully placed the bottle on the table. “Your Romanée-Conti, would you like me to pour it for you?”
“No,” Shen Shiwu said firmly.
“Certainly.”
After the waiter left, Jiang Siyi eagerly reached for the bottle, but Shen Shiwu stood up and effortlessly took it from her. “Eat first.”
Fine.
After finishing her black truffle pasta, Jiang Siyi wiped her mouth with a tissue and looked at Shen Shiwu expectantly.
Shen Shiwu was always elegant when she ate, her cutlery barely making a sound.
She noticed Jiang Siyi’s gaze, but she continued eating slowly. Ten minutes later, she finally poured a small amount of wine into Jiang Siyi’s glass.
Barely a sip.
Jiang Siyi pouted. “Stingy.”
“Do you want another gastric bleed?”
Hearing this, the memory of the recent incident at the hospital came flooding back.
Jiang Siyi was speechless, then she realized something. “How did you know?”
“I guessed.”
“…”
Jiang Siyi downed the wine in one gulp.
The acidity was just right, the fruity aroma and a hint of mint lingering on her tongue, and she reluctantly put down her glass. Then she asked, “Did you come to see me at the hospital that day?”
Shen Shiwu also took a sip of wine.
Meeting Jiang Siyi’s gaze, she finally nodded. “Mm-hmm, I was passing by.”
As if.
Jiang Siyi scoffed, then, as the alcohol started to take effect, her vision became slightly blurry.
Impossible, she couldn’t be this drunk already.
Thinking this, as if to prove herself, she suddenly stood up.
Shen Shiwu raised an eyebrow. “Drunk?”
“No,” Jiang Siyi said disdainfully, waving her hand, “just a sip, how could I be drunk?”
The next second, she collapsed.
Fortunately, Shen Shiwu reacted quickly and caught her, preventing her face from hitting the table.
Jiang Siyi, who had just insisted she wasn’t drunk, was now patting Shen Shiwu’s face, her words slurred. “Hey, pretty lady.”
Shen Shiwu: “…”
“You’re so beautiful, like a movie star,” Jiang Siyi said, her voice full of admiration, “come with me.”
“I’ll take care of you, how about that?”
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