Chapter 115
In the few days before Jiang Chenyin returned to Qinzhou, her contact with Bo Muyu remained the same.
This was very similar to their previous way of getting along, but their state of mind was no longer the same. The intimate words in their conversations were now tinged with a hint of ambiguity. This new emotion brought them more feelings, yet it still allowed them to retain their former bond.
On the night before she returned to Qinzhou, Bo Muyu listed many dishes to Jiang Chenyin on the phone, “Spicy chicken, steamed fish, sweet and sour pork ribs, garlic pork ribs, steamed pork ribs with rice flour. Mmm… and curry chicken. I can make all of these.”
Jiang Chenyin held her phone to her ear with one hand, and with the other, she flicked her mostly dry hair, and couldn’t help but laugh. “So many? And why is it all meat? What about vegetables?”
Bo Muyu’s tone was very serious, as if she were defending herself for not just focusing on meat. “There are also many vegetables, but they’re all just greens, so I won’t mention them.”
“It’s clearly you who likes to eat meat. Vegetables can’t even catch your eye,” Jiang Chenyin said with a laugh, refuting her. She didn’t believe that Bo Muyu would practice making vegetarian dishes. She had loved eating meat since she was a child.
Bo Muyu on the other end was quiet for a moment, then said to her, “We can have dinner together the day after tomorrow.”
“Then tomorrow…” Jiang Chenyin paused, a soft light in her eyes. “I’ll be in Qinzhou by dinnertime tomorrow. Don’t you have a dinner party?”
If they were to meet tomorrow, the schedule would be a bit tight. When she landed, Bo Muyu’s social engagement should be in progress. She would have to find a place to wait, or go home first. In this way, it would be very late by the time they met.
Unless they stayed together for the night.
Jiang Chenyin did not say what was on her mind. Even though Bo Muyu had also slept in the same bed with her when she had come to Jinghe to see her, the situation had been special at that time. Now, if she were to bring it up, it would seem very impatient.
As the older one, she couldn’t create this misunderstanding, to make Bo Muyu think that she was very eager to do something. Of course, this didn’t mean that she didn’t want to meet. In fact, she really wanted the two of them to be together for a long time.
As she was hesitating, Bo Muyu’s low voice came through, “Then… can you wait for me at my place? You have the keys.”
Jiang Chenyin was taken aback for a moment. Before she could answer, Bo Muyu added softly, “I miss you very much.”
These four words landed firmly in Jiang Chenyin’s heart. She savored them, and an indescribable gentleness rose in her heart like a tide. She had wanted to take it slow and maintain a sense of propriety, but she had failed again, because she also wanted to express her own longing in a warm environment.
“Okay, then I’ll go over directly after I get off the plane,” she replied in a light and soft voice. “If the food is not to your taste tomorrow night, send me a message before you come back.”
“Mmm,” Bo Muyu replied heavily, followed by a light laugh.
Jiang Chenyin could imagine her nodding on the other end of the line, and ripples spread in her heart, excessively soft.
In early April, the wind was light and the clouds were clear. The end of spring had arrived.
On the way back to the city, Jiang Chenyin’s assistant was driving. Jiang Chenyin was sitting in the back seat, and not long after she had gotten in, she received a call from Lan Yuxin.
“Teacher Jiang, are you very happy now!” Lan Yuxin’s teeth were itching, and you could almost imagine her gritting her teeth. “I have to be back at the end of the month at the earliest, and you can get the beauty back today!”
“I’m okay. You can come back earlier if you’re more efficient,” Jiang Chenyin’s words were accompanied by a gentle smile, and you could feel her good mood just by listening.
It was rare for her to tease Lan Yuxin, and Lan Yuxin was not to be outdone. “Oh, so happy. I’m afraid you’ll have a good time tonight.”
“Don’t talk nonsense!” Jiang Chenyin cleared her throat and changed the subject. “When you come back, bring me some preserved fruits from Jinghe. I forgot to bring them. I want to give them to my family.”
“Is that so?” Lan Yuxin muttered to herself. “Oh, then why did I hear from my assistant that you had already told Xiao Lu to do it a couple of days ago?”
Jiang Chenyin closed her eyes and sighed softly, her hand on her temples. “Yuxin…”
“Hahaha! I knew you were fooling me!” Lan Yuxin laughed so hard that Jiang Chenyin felt her phone was shaking. “Is it that hard to admit that you’re having a good time tonight? You’re so old and still so shy. A proper discussion can let you be a little prepared, okay? What if you kick the ball crooked at the last minute?”
“You…” Jiang Chenyin paused, then burst out laughing. “You also know I’m old. Can’t you understand me a little?”
Lan Yuxin was still laughing. “I understand, I understand. I know you two have a big age gap… but you should still be a little more proactive when you should be. You know what I mean, right? Don’t always put on an old person’s hat.”
“Okay, I know this,” Jiang Chenyin replied to this question with a proper attitude. Regarding her desire to control the progress as much as possible, she had already admitted defeat.
Lan Yuxin got a satisfactory answer and then grinned and became improper. “Very good. Then have you seen the good things I sent you?”
Jiang Chenyin’s face turned a little red, and she threw a “alright, I’m hanging up” at her and then cut off the call.
Bo Muyu’s dinner party in the evening was with Su Man. Su Man had recently taken a fancy to a script with a rather special and currently rare theme, and was also planning to get an investment. The other party wanted to meet and talk, so she had brought along Bo Muyu, who was already a little famous in the screenwriting circle.
After the cooperation was settled, everyone’s posture became a little more casual, and the topic also extended to other directions.
Bo Muyu’s mind also wandered to other places. It wasn’t until her phone in her pocket vibrated that she lowered her head, took it out to look, and a smile appeared on her lips.
Su Man, on the side, noticed her small action, a deep and searching look in her eyes that soon turned into a dim, sorrowful expression.
The dinner party ended because Su Man had brought it up first. The other party saw that everything that needed to be discussed had been discussed, so in the end, everyone said some polite words and left the hotel separately.
Bo Muyu went down to the parking lot with Su Man. Her steps were a little hurried, and she was a little ahead of Su Man. Su Man, from her side and behind, gazed at her side profile, recalling that in the second half of the social engagement just now, she had started to have some small actions, and was clearly absent-minded.
Thinking a little deeper, Su Man’s happy mood from having settled the cooperation tonight was suddenly gone.
The parking lot was very quiet. Their footsteps crossed, and Su Man stopped. “Xiaoyu.”
Hearing this, Bo Muyu also stopped and turned back, the eagerness and smile on her face still there. “President Su… Senior, what’s wrong?”
“You…” Su Man said with difficulty, and she herself couldn’t believe it. “Are you in a relationship?”
Bo Muyu was immediately taken aback. The hand holding her briefcase tightened nervously, and she tried her best to maintain a calm expression. “Why do you ask?”
“So it’s really like this?” Su Man smiled bitterly. “I’ve seen it many times. Recently, when you’re having lunch, you’ll be chatting on WeChat while you eat, not concentrating at all. You’ve never been like this before. And just now, your mind wasn’t here after you received the message.”
Su Man hadn’t said it in detail. When Bo Muyu was chatting on WeChat during lunch, even the corners of her lips were lifted, and her eyes were full of a brilliant light.
What kind of thing could make her maintain this state? Su Man knew very well.
After hearing what Su Man had said, Bo Muyu smiled a little embarrassedly. “It’s that obvious? I thought it wouldn’t be so easy to be seen.”
Su Man smiled faintly, her words holding a hidden meaning. “Under normal circumstances, it’s indeed not so easy to be seen.”
If she hadn’t been paying attention to Bo Muyu all along, she naturally wouldn’t have remembered these habits, nor would she have noticed these details. She had never been mentally prepared for Bo Muyu to have a lover. At this moment, receiving her reply, her eyes, under the lights, flashed with tears and then disappeared.
“I’m sorry, Senior…” Bo Muyu lowered her head. All she could give Su Man was an apology.
Su Man did not reply to her, but instead asked, “Is it someone from the company?”
Bo Muyu shook her head. “No.”
She only denied it, but did not say who it was. Su Man could feel that she did not want to reveal the person’s identity. The thought of guessing that she had just had could only be discarded. If it was not someone from the company, then it would be very difficult to guess who the other person was.
Besides, no matter how much she guessed, it was useless. They had never even started.
Su Man’s breathing was a little shaky. She forced herself to pat Bo Muyu’s arm and curved her lips. “Let’s go. It’s getting late… someone is waiting for you.”
After she finished, she walked past Bo Muyu and went ahead, not showing any more negative emotions. Bo Muyu looked at her retreating back, and another apology was stuck in her throat. She silently said it to her in her heart.
Jiang Chenyin had eaten dinner outside before returning to Bo Muyu’s house. She put away her luggage and walked around the house, seeing if there was anything that needed to be tidied up. As far as she knew, the Ye Xialan couple rarely came over, so the cleanliness of the house since she had moved in was all Bo Muyu’s own doing.
She was in a relaxed mood and was killing time in the study, her gaze slowly sweeping over the neatly arranged spines of the books.
She took out a copy of A World History of Film to read. Just as she was getting into it, she heard the sound of footsteps, from far to near, approaching her with a hint of a cool night air. She quickly closed the book and turned around. The girl with the clear and distant features was gazing at her, walking closer step by step, a fine, soft light in her eyes.
“You’re back?” Jiang Chenyin’s lips lifted in a smile, and she went to take the briefcase from Bo Muyu’s hand. “Are you tired?”
Bo Muyu’s gaze did not waver as she watched her turn slightly to put away her briefcase, and she replied with a curve on her lips, “No. I came back very early today, not even nine.”
Bo Muyu found it hard to tear her gaze away. Jiang Chenyin was wearing a V-neck black slim-fit half-sleeve dress today, her body’s curves perfectly presented, both intellectual and elegant, and also graceful and charming.
Jiang Chenyin was a gentle woman by nature, but she always maintained a proper distance with outsiders, and was caring and close to her family and friends. The gentleness in her personality was only fully expressed with Bo Muyu. This was the case even before their relationship had changed. Now that their feelings had taken a turn, the tenderness in her words and actions made Bo Muyu’s heart even sweeter.
“Auntie Yin, have you had dinner?” Bo Muyu asked, taking her hand, wanting to talk to her more.
“I ate before I came over,” Jiang Chenyin said, touching her long hair, her heart stirring slightly. She gently pulled her into her arms and coaxed her in a low, gentle voice, “Let me hug you.”
Bo Muyu snuggled obediently into Jiang Chenyin’s embrace and took a deep breath, feeling that both her emotional and physical sense of belonging were satisfied, and then she said softly, “Stay here tonight. Don’t go back.”
Her meaning was very simple, but based on their current relationship and the atmosphere, it was inexplicably tinged with a hint of ambiguity.
Jiang Chenyin lowered her head and met her gaze, a ripple in her sparkling eyes, a sly smile on her lips. “Do you understand what you’re saying right now?”
