Zhou Jinxiu was sent spinning, his vision blurring as stars danced before his eyes, his internal organs churning from the impact.
Fearing that a single heavy punch would finish him off, he quickly clutched his shoulder, shielding his face with his arm, and lay on the ground, wailing.
"It's me! Nan Fang, stop hitting, it's me!"
"I'm your elder sister, Zhou Jinxiu! Sister, you're about to beat me to death!"
Hearing his voice, Jiang Nan Fang pulled his arm away and looked. She retracted her knee.
"It's you. Why would you sneak attack me when you could have just walked the normal way?"
Zhou Jinxiu's stomach hurt terribly, and he curled himself into a shrimp shape.
"Who sneak attacked you? I haven't seen you in months. It's rare to bump into you here again, and I was so happy to give you a hug, but then..."
"Ow, it hurts so much. What have you been up to lately? Practicing your skills again? My internal organs are going to be smashed to pieces by you."
Jiang Nan Fang was very apologetic. While saying sorry, she helped him up. It took them several minutes of fumbling before they got upstairs.
Entering Jiang Nan Fang's room, Zhou Jinxiu finally felt a bit better. He pressed her about what she had been doing recently, saying he couldn't find her anywhere and her number had become a dead line. He had thought she had left Nan City.
So much had happened during their time apart.
Jiang Nan Fang didn't know where to start, so she kept it brief.
"It's a long story, let's not talk about me. What about you? What have you been busy with lately?"
"You look well. Have you got a new girlfriend again?"
Hearing this, Zhou Jinxiu couldn't help but pour out his troubles.
"You must have a misunderstanding of those four words, 'look well'."
"I'm almost driven crazy by the new project, working overtime every day, always on a business trip or on the way to a meeting. I should look sallow, not good. How could I possibly look good?"
"Besides, after meeting you, would I dare be intimate with another woman? My heart is all yours, I can't possibly find a new girlfriend."
Jiang Nan Fang dismissed his words as if he had passed gas, not taking them seriously.
"Is it still the project you went to Sanya for the opening ceremony? Is it not finished yet?"
Zhou Jinxiu said, "My second brother doesn't like me and is deliberately trying to mess with me. I've made the proposal plan so perfect, but he's never satisfied whenever I submit it. How can it ever be completed?"
"I've lost count of how many proposals I've submitted to him. I've changed my planning team eight times over, and I can't continue doing this work."
"I've come back this time to talk to him face to face. If it works, great. If not, forget it."
"If you want me dead, just say so. There's no need to drag it out like this. It's been three months, and if it continues like this, I'll die an unnatural death."
Jiang Nan Fang was confused, "Is it that exaggerated? How bad is your planning team that a proposal still hasn't been approved after three months?"
Zhou Jinxiu sighed.
"It's not about whether the planning team is bad or not, it's about my second brother having psychological issues..."
"Alright, I won't talk about this with you anymore. Since we've finally met again, let's talk about something happy."
"To appease him, I haven't been to a bar in three months. Anyway, after I talk to him tomorrow, I don't plan to continue this job. Shall we go out and have some fun together today?"
"..."
Zhou Jinxiu grabbed Jiang Nan Fang's hand. The nearly six-foot-tall man started acting like a spoiled child.
"You have no idea how sad I was during the days I couldn't contact you, and how happy I am to see you again today."
"Let's go, I promise I won't mess around. I'll pursue you properly and won't take advantage of you when we're drunk. Let's go out and have some fun~"
Jiang Nan Fang pushed his hand away.
"I'm not really afraid of you taking advantage of me, it's just..."
"Afraid you'll take advantage of me? That's okay!"
Zhou Jinxiu threw off his coat and struck an exaggerated pose, as if preparing to fall backward.
"I can offer myself to you anytime, even without taking responsibility! As long as you're willing, I'll give my all!"
Jiang Nan Fang was amused and exasperated by his persistence.
But truthfully, if she were to lose such a carefree friend in her life, she would indeed lose a lot of fun.
In the days without Zhou Jinxiu, she had almost forgotten how to smile.
"Alright, I'll go out with you for a bit. But we can't stay out too long, we must be back before ten."
Zhou Jinxiu happily drove her out.
To avoid running into Zhan Bei Jue at a bar he invested in, Jiang Nan Fang requested a change of venue.
They found a quiet bar nearby with a good reputation, thinking they could sing, drink, play billiards, pool, or bowling. It seemed like a good plan.
However, fate is indeed marvelous.
Just as Zhou Jinxiu found a quiet place, Zhan Bei Jue also had an appointment there.
The drinking area was divided into two halves by a row of wooden slats resembling blinds.
Each half had six tables arranged on either side.
Zhan Bei Jue sat on the left half with his companion, at table number three on the right. Jiang Nan Fang and Zhou Jinxiu were led by the waiter to the right half, at table number three on the left.
An hour later, separated only by a decorative panel, the two were seated together again.
After they were seated, Zhou Jinxiu first generously ordered a pile of food and drinks, then began to pour out his troubles to Jiang Nan Fang again.
"Honestly, I think he's psychologically twisted due to endocrine disorders from not interacting with women for a long time. Otherwise, why would he be so fond of tormenting people?"
"He definitely has some unspeakable difficulties in that department. Let me analyze it for you carefully."
"You know Dr. Lu Mingzhe, the psychologist, right? You've met him? And his younger brother, Lu Qingxu, you've met him too, haven't you? He looks quite handsome and refined, doesn't he?"
"And his assistant, A Zhong, isn't he also effeminate like the two of them?"
"So many people can't stand to be around him, yet these few have been with him for so many years, and they're all in the same category, belonging to the 'handsome guy' type?"
"The key thing is that these few have all been single for a long time."
"Lu Mingzhe and Lu Qingxu earn a lot of money every year, right? They're handsome, young, and have good incomes, yet they've been single for so long... Tsk, I can figure it out even with my eyes closed."
Next door, Zhan Bei Jue, hearing the familiar voice and names, slowly furrowed his brows.
Zhou Jinxiu continued, "Look at his attitude towards men, and then look at his attitude towards women."
"You're beautiful enough, and I, Zhou Jinxiu, having seen countless women, would call you a goddess. Not only is he not interested in you, but he even treats you like a man and torments you..."
"Hey, you know what? Maybe I should just cater to his preferences. I shouldn't be working on proposal plans anymore, I should just get a couple of handsome guys and send them to his room, maybe..."
As someone who had had an intimate relationship with Zhan Bei Jue, Jiang Nan Fang naturally knew that Zhou Jinxiu's speculations were baseless.
But who told him to provoke her, and his mother who looked down on everyone!
After provoking her, Jiang Nan Fang, did he expect her to speak up for him and vindicate him?
"I think that's a good idea. Since you've suspected he has some hidden issues for a long time, you should have done this sooner."
"If you had sent people to him earlier, perhaps your proposal plan would have been approved by now."
Zhou Jinxiu became more animated as he spoke. To end the torment of his job for the past three months, he immediately took out his phone.
"Then I'll find them for him right now! There are so many handsome young men in the world who are beautiful and eager for success!"
"As long as he likes it, I can find thirty different ones a month without repetition!"