Jiang Xiao froze, her tongue seemed to be tied and unable to speak.
Zhou Xiulin took a step forward, and a gentle breeze seemed to blow through the air. He sat down slowly. In a calm and unhurried manner, he said, “Come over here.” He smiled at her, his expression gentle.
Jiang Xiao’s mind went blank, as if under a spell, and she walked straight over to him. She stopped two steps away from him and looked at her toes. She had worn her newly bought white shoes to the hospital in the morning, but now they had several black marks on them. The salary of an intern is low and this pair of shoes had cost her six or seven hundred yuan, which was a quarter of her salary. Fortunately, she was about to become a regular employee next month, so she didn’t feel too heartbroken about it. She glanced at him, and saw his black leather shoes, which were clean and reflected his demeanor.
Zhou Xiulin twisted his lips slightly and asked, “Are you nervous?”
Jiang Xiao took a deep breath and shook her head.
“Then, are you afraid of me?”
Jiang Xiao still shook her head.
Zhou Xiulin was silent for a moment before saying, “Sit down and let’s talk.” His tone was as usual, neither light nor heavy.
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Kkydt Dkys piwllgle bla ryzx byae yde qkdyzzu xwpvlale wr vbl nswaytl vs zssj bkx kd vbl lul. “Ebyv es usw oydv vs vyzj ycswv?”
Gp pssd yp pbl prsjl, bla hsknl clnyxl bsyapl yde valxczkdt. Eyp pbl yqayke sq bkx? Hbsw Dkwzkd’p caso qwaasole pzktbvzu, yde bl ryvvle vbl psqy, nzlyazu kdeknyvkdt vbyv Kkydt Dkys pbswze pkv esod.
Tl nzlyale bkp vbasyv yde qkdyzzu pyke, “R oyp eawdj vbyv dktbv.”
Kkydt Dkys czwpble okvb lxcyaayppxldv, yde pbl poyzzsole pwcnsdpnkswpzu, “R…”
“Gzvbswtb R oyp eawdj, R oyp pvkzz nsdpnkswp sq obyv byrrldle. Ebld R osjl wr kd vbl xsadkdt, usw olal tsdl.” Mbkp pnakrv oyp nsxrzlvlzu clusde bkp nsdvasz.
“Mbyv oyp yd ynnkeldv,” Kkydt Dkys pyke.
Hbsw Dkwzkd’p qynl oyp y ckv plakswp. “Rv byrrldle pweeldzu vbyv dktbv, yde R eked’v vyjl ydu ralnywvksdp.”
Kkydt Dkys takvvle bla vllvb yde czwavle swv, “R vssj xleknkdl.”
Zhou Xiulin was briefly taken aback. “Jiang Xiao, are you not planning to talk to me about it?”
“What’s there to talk about?”
Zhou Xiulin was taken aback by her question. He looked at her eyes, which were innocent like cat’s eyes. At this moment, although she was so nervous and anxious, she pretended to be calm.
“Mr. Zhou, it was an accident that night, and I…” She was a little anxious. “I didn’t want anything from you.”
“What if I’m willing to give it?”
“…Are you going to give me money?”
He smiled and said nothing.
Jiang Xiao looked conflicted, even suppressing her anger. Although she was not good at arguing with people, she had a temper too. What did he take her for?
“Jiang Xiao, I’m 28 years old this year, single, and you should know my work situation.”
Jiang Xiao blinked skeptically.
“My family is relatively simple. I have a younger sister who is six years younger than me. She is studying abroad, and my parents are with her. They will be returning to the country soon.”
Jiang Xiao thought to herself that even though the Zhou family seemed simple, the world was not that simple.
“What else do you want to know?”
Jiang Xiao was wary. “What do I need to know?”
“We can date as boyfriend and girlfriend,” said Zhou Xiulin with a slight pause.
This one sentence caused a thousand waves.
Jiang Xiao suddenly stood up. “What are you joking about?”
Zhou Xiulin raised his eyebrows. “You’re 22 years old this year, about to graduate from university, and there’s a six-year age difference between us. I don’t think that should be a problem.”
Jiang Xiao pointed to herself. “Do you even know who I am?”
Zhou Xiulin nodded. “You’re Jiang Xiao, of the Jiang clan, the dawn of dawn, 22 years old, majoring in Media Communication at J University. You graduated from Jincheng No.1 Middle School.” It turned out that she was his little sister’s elementary school classmate.
“You investigated me?”
Zhou Xiulin did not explain. “Do you think that night’s events can just be forgotten like that?”
Jiang Xiao’s brain quickly turned. “President Zhou, what do you want to do?”
“I need a girlfriend. My mother and the others will be back from abroad next month.”
Jiang Xiao understood. “You want me to pretend to be your girlfriend?”
Zhou Xiulin didn’t reply, but his lips curled slightly.
Jiang Xiao’s face turned paler and she just stared at him. The curtains in the office weren’t fully open, and a few beams of light shone in. Against the light, it’s hard to see his face clearly. All she could see were his eyes, calm yet sparkling like a lighthouse shining in the night in Jincheng.
“No, I can’t. That night was an accident, let’s forget about it…” She averted her eyes and suppressed the temptation he offered. Even though she really, really wanted to be his girlfriend. The fine dots of light outside the window scattered across the half-empty room, their luster like a phantom.
At this moment, there were two knocks on the door.
“Come in–“
A middle-aged woman pushed the door open. “Manager Zhou, Sister Ying is here.”
Zhou Xiulin raised his hand to check the time. “Make her a cup of coffee and tell her I’ll be there in a moment.”
“Okay.”
The office returned to peace.
Sister Ying was a nickname for the company’s sister, Cheng Ying. She had a close relationship with Zhou Xiulin, and there were speculations online that Cheng Ying’s boyfriend was actually Zhou Xiulin.
Cheng Ying had come this far in her career thanks to the Zhou family.
Zhou Xiulin’s deep and gentle voice sounded again, and Jiang Xiao suddenly thought of something. She lowered her eyes and said, “I’m sorry, I don’t want to.”
Zhou Xiulin looked at her face and patiently asked, “Why not?”
Jiang Xiao felt disappointed, even though the woman was usually the one who suffered from such situations, she didn’t want to push it too hard. “You’re too much older than me.”
Six years…too much…
Even Zhou Xiulin, who was known for his eloquence, didn’t know what to say to Jiang Xiao. He let out a faint sigh, “Then what do you want?”
Jiang Xiao squeezed her hand tightly and shook her head, looking sincere. “Right now, I just want to focus on my work.”
“That’s a good reason.”
As her boss, he couldn’t dampen her work enthusiasm.
“If there’s anything, you can call my cell phone.” His voice remained steady as he handed her a card with his private number written on it.
Jiang Xiao took it and held it in her hand. She glanced at the card, which read:
Zhou Xiulin
1**********
The handwriting was neat and didn’t look like a business card. Jiang Xiao put the card in her bag.
Zhou Xiulin looked at her with his black eyes and suddenly laughed when he saw her resolute face. He realized that he had no charm in her eyes.
“Jiang Xiao, we can start as friends.”
Jiang Xiao murmured, “Oh.”
Jiang Xiao left his office and as soon as she stepped out, her legs went weak. She leaned against the wall to avoid collapsing.
She just rejected Zhou Xiulin.
She had actually rejected Zhou Xiulin.
She had given up a large forest of possibilities. However, after their conversation, she still hadn’t mentioned the main point. Like, what should she do with the little seed in her belly?
In the evening, Jiang Xiao returned to school, had a simple dinner at the cafeteria and went back to the dormitory.
The dormitory leader and the fourth roommate had already gone back home, and the second roommate was still studying at the university.
“Hey, Jiang Xiao, you’re back! The school sent a notice that we have to move out at the latest this weekend. Have you found a place to stay?”
“Yes, I found one, I’m moving this weekend.”
“Where are you staying?”
“Near the Line 2 subway.”
“What’s wrong with you? Are you feeling sick? You don’t look very well.”
Jiang Xiao slapped her face. “It’s hot outside.” She took out a signed photo from her bag. “Here, it’s your idol.”
“Wow, thank you so much!” Huang Ya hugged her excitedly and kissed her. “My Zhong Yishuo is handsome. When you were on set, did you have any contact with him?”
“He bought us ice cream, and he’s pretty nice.” Jiang Xiao didn’t mention that after a month, he and the female lead were quite intimate as well.
“It’s also great to be a star assistant, you can meet your favorite stars.”
Jiang Xiao smiled.
“By the way, Xiaoxiao, Li Li is getting married in early July and sent us invitations.”
“Marriage? They just graduated.”
“Li Li is three months pregnant.”
Jiang Xiao opened her mouth wide. “That was fast.”
“She and her boyfriend have been together for four years. Marriage was only a matter of time”.
“I mean, why is Li Li pregnant?”
Huang Ya laughed. “You’re silly! Didn’t she and her boyfriend move in together a long time ago? Li Li is just good at hiding things. She kept it from us for three months. We have to celebrate her wedding.”
Jiang Xiao responded with a guilty voice and quickly went to pack her bags.
On Friday night, Zhou Xiulin attended a banquet. Zhao Xinran, was also invited early.
Zhao Xinran’s popularity has been rising lately, and several directors and producers have just discussed the TV series they will be shooting next with her. Her humble and serious attitude left a good impression on them.
Not far away, Zhou Xiulin and Xingme’s young master, Mo Yiheng, stood together.
Mo Yiheng was tall and handsome, with a completely different personality from Zhou Xiulin. He didn’t know how many flirtatious glances he threw at the female stars that night. Zhou Xiulin also noticed, but only from afar.
“Xiulin, you seem to really like her lately. You take her wherever you go,” Mo Yiheng pointed to Zhao Xinran in the distance.
“You’re thinking too much,” said Zhou Xiulin, holding a glass.
Mo Yiheng teased him, “I heard you didn’t go home that night?”
“You know a lot,” replied Zhou Xiulin coldly.
Mo Yiheng suddenly gasped and said, “What’s on your hand? Were you bitten? You’ve been looking at the wound for a long time. What’s the matter? Did a dog bite you?”
Zhou Xiulin gave him a cold look and turned his body slightly.
“Don’t use your peach blossom eyes on me. What’s wrong? Was it your sweetheart who bit you? You have a really strong taste,” Mo Yiheng said, putting his arm around him.
Zhou Xiulin removed his arm. “I’m leaving.”
“Hey, don’t go. We rarely get together. Let’s have two games tonight,” said Mo Yiheng, holding his shoulder.
“I’m not interested,” said Zhou Xiulin, putting down his glass.
As Zhou Xiulin walked into the hotel lobby, he saw Jiang Xiao sitting in the corner of the couch with a dark bag beside her, looking sleepy. She had been feeling very tired lately and kept having dreams at night. Sometimes she dreamed of Zhou Xiulin, and other times of a naked baby. One night she even dreamed that a baby called her “mom.” She woke up startled and couldn’t sleep all night.
She secretly searched online and found that drinking during pregnancy was not good. She became even more afraid.
Jiang Xiao was not sleeping deeply, and when she sensed someone looking at her, she squinted and said in a daze, “It’s you!”
Zhou Xiulin stood before her with a smile that was not quite a smile. “It’s me.”
[Dreamy Theater]
On a certain day in a certain year, Jiang Xiao, who had already become a mother, asked for her child’s clothes and casually called out, “Lao Zhou, bring me the baby’s underwear.”
Zhou Xiulin brought the small clothes from the wardrobe with a smile that was not quite a smile. “Lao Zhou?”
Jiang Xiao said, “You misheard me. I clearly called you ‘husband’.”
Zhou Xiulin replied, “It seems that I’m getting old and my hearing isn’t so good.”
Jiang Xiao: “…”
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LOL too old!! XD Thank you for translating looking forward to the next chapter!!!
Thank you for reading!