But Ji Zhixiu was content with it.
Life seemed to slowly return to how it was before.
Except now there were two more people in the house.
Whenever the two of them appeared together, it was never peaceful.
It was like this now too. Song Yin didn't have class today, and the two of them bickered endlessly as soon as they met.
"We agreed to share the game, one round each!"
"I bought the game, and now I'm not playing with you."
"You! You're bullying me!"
"Yes, I am bullying you."
Jiang Mian was speechless. "A guest is coming over later, you two aren't allowed to be this noisy."
Ye Yi's attention was diverted as he turned his head. "Who?"
Song Yin seized the opportunity to snatch the game console from his hand, looking smug. "My turn!"
Jiang Mian smiled at him. "You'll know when they arrive."
Ye Yi scoffed. "Do I know them?"
Jiang Mian nodded. "Yes."
She thought he would ask more questions, but to her surprise, Ye Yi just sat on the sofa and started playing on his phone.
Jiang Mian pressed him. "Aren't you curious?"
"Curious about what? We'll see them when they get here, won't we?"
That made sense. Jiang Mian glanced at her phone. The WeChat message said she had arrived.
Jiang Mian called out towards the kitchen, "Aunt Song, can you bring out the afternoon tea I asked you to make?"
"Coming right up!"
Aunt Song soon came out with a tray. "Where should I put it, young madam?"
Jiang Mian pushed her chair back and stood up. "Bring it to the bar counter."
There was a low coffee table by the bar, covered with a layer of cyan velvet rug.
Sunlight streamed in from the window, falling onto the brown sofa cushions.
It was very cozy.
As she moved, Xiao Yugan followed behind her.
Jiang Mian: "Just put it here."
Aunt Song bent down and arranged the items.
They didn't wait long before Xiao Bai brought someone into the living room.
"Mian Mian! I'm here!"
The lively, sweet voice instantly filled the entire living room.
Ye Yi looked up and saw Jing Yiyi. His forehead twitched. Was this the guest Jiang Mian mentioned? When did they become so close?
Jiang Mian quickly stood up. "Welcome, welcome!"
Jing Yiyi seemed to not see Ye Yi, walking directly towards Jiang Mian.
She immediately gave Jiang Mian a big hug. "I brought you a gift! Congratulations on the baby."
Jiang Mian liked her personality. She was generous and natural, and she didn't feel awkward about Jing Yiyi having once been set up with Ji Zhixiu.
She smiled radiantly. "Thank you so much."
Jing Yiyi turned and called to Xiao Bai, "Hurry up."
Xiao Bai's face was contorted, carrying seven or eight bags in his hands.
He really wanted to know what this woman had bought to make them so heavy.
He put the bags down. "Young madam, I'll be going now?"
Jiang Mian waved. "Go ahead."
Jing Yiyi sat down. "Let's see what I bought for you."
She opened a bag. "How is it? Isn't this outfit beautiful?"
In her hand was a pure cotton baby onesie, clearly for a girl.
Then she opened two more bags in succession. "These are all things I bought for the baby."
Jiang Mian: "It's still too early. You've spent too much."
Jing Yiyi waved her hand. "Oh, it's not early at all. She can wear it as soon as she's born."
Jiang Mian chuckled. "Why are they all for a girl?"
Jing Yiyi said righteously, "Because I think it's a girl. Of course, it's better to have a girl! They're cute and pretty, unlike those stinky men."
Her last sentence was filled with immense resentment.
Ye Yi was displeased. "What do you mean stinky men? We bathe every day, we smell great!"
Jing Yiyi tilted her chin. "Who are you talking to? Go away."
Ye Yi: "Did I offend you again? You're ignoring me like I don't exist, and you're snapping at me. I don't owe you anything."
"You do owe me, though. A debt of my affection," she muttered softly.
Jiang Mian heard it clearly and thought they were quite the bickering couple.
Jing Yiyi huffed and decided to ignore him.
She sat down. "I brought you other things too."
Jing Yiyi opened a gift box. "This is lino's new limited edition gift set. I saw the lipstick swatches from the bloggers, it's absolutely gorgeous!!"
Jiang Mian was surprised. "This set? I couldn't get it. Your reflexes are quick."
Jing Yiyi proudly said, "Of course. Want to try it?"
The two girls instantly started chatting, one sentence after another, unable to stop.
Song Yin was bored playing alone, stuck on a level he couldn't beat.
He nudged Ye Yi. "You wanna play?"
Ye Yi looked down at his phone. "No."
Song Yin threw down the game controller. "I don't care!! I'm stuck!"
"That's because you're bad," Ye Yi taunted.
Song Yin was furious. He was determined to beat this level today.
He didn't have the skill, but he had Ye Yi.
Seeing Ye Yi unmoved, Song Yin gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and rolled onto the floor.
"I don't care, I don't care!! Play with me!! Play with me!!"
"Ye Yi is bullying me! The adult is bullying the child!!"
"Bullying!!"
Ye Yi was so annoyed by his noise that his hand trembled, almost dropping his phone.
He looked up. "Stop being unreasonable!"
The next second, Song Yin wailed even louder, his cries echoing throughout the entire living room.
Jiang Mian looked up and cleared her throat. "Don't mind him."
Jing Yiyi only then noticed him. She asked curiously, "Who is that?"
Jiang Mian: "A... younger brother."
Jing Yiyi chuckled. "He's quite mischievous. Wait for me."
She got up and walked over to Song Yin, looking down at him. "I know how to play this game."
"Ye Yi is bullying me—" The words stopped abruptly. Song Yin scrambled up from the floor. "You really know how?"
Jing Yiyi crossed her arms. "Of course. If he doesn't help you, I will."
"Okay, okay, okay!" Song Yin's eyes lit up. He picked up the game controller from the sofa and handed it to her. "Please—"
Jing Yiyi cleared her throat. "Watch carefully."
She deliberately sat opposite Ye Yi and secretly glanced at him. The man remained as still as a rock, showing no reaction.
Jing Yiyi pouted. "Come on, watch closely. I'll show you how to beat this level."
"How was it?"
Seeing the "Next Level" text on the screen, Song Yin happily scrambled to pour Jing Yiyi a glass of water. "Sister, you're amazing!"
He hesitated, wanting to ask Jing Yiyi to come over often, but suddenly remembered this wasn't his home, and he really didn't have the right to say it.
Jing Yiyi didn't notice his unspoken words.
She reached out and patted Song Yin's head, unnoticed by Ye Yi's surprised gaze.
"That's right. What he knows, I know too. Don't beg him next time, let's play together."
Song Yin nodded. "Okay, okay, okay!"
"How about a two-player game?"
"This one! I want to play!"
"No problem!"
Jiang Mian chuckled. Jing Yiyi was a good girl.
She didn't know how Jing Yiyi got her WeChat, but Jing Yiyi was very enthusiastic.
She would chat with her from time to time, asking about her health. After knowing she was fine, she said she wanted to visit.
Jiang Mian hesitated for a moment before telling her that Ye Yi was also there.
Then, Jiang Mian saw "Typing..." above the chat window.
It seemed like a long time before the other party replied.
Jing Yiyi: [Why bother with him]
Jing Yiyi: [Doesn't matter]
Jing Yiyi: [Are you free tomorrow? I won't be bothering you, will I?]
It was evident that during this long period, she had been very anxious.
Jiang Mian sighed silently at the time. It was really hard for others to interfere in matters of the heart.
Now, seeing her get along so well with Song Yin, Jiang Mian found it quite interesting.
The afternoon sun was perfect, and even the tiny particles in the air exuded a comfortable aura.
Jiang Mian tucked her legs under her, picked up a cookie, and Xiao Yugan snuggled close beside her.
She wore a loose, thin, sky-blue velvet sweater, her hair tied up casually.
Her face looked clean and translucent in the sunlight.
Her expression was gentle as she lowered her head to tease Xiao Yugan.
This scene would be remembered by Ye Yi for many years to come.
Jing Yiyi's eyes welled up, and she quickly averted her gaze from him.
Ji Zhixiu didn't come back for dinner. The four of them ate together.
Jing Yiyi praised the cooking of Jiang Mian's in-house chef.
Jiang Mian: "You're always welcome to visit."
After an afternoon spent admiring the sister's skills, Song Yin, for once, nodded in agreement with Jiang Mian. "Me too!"
Ye Yi glanced at him but said nothing.
Jing Yiyi smiled. "Okay."
After dinner, Jing Yiyi stood up to leave.
Jiang Mian looked at Ye Yi. "Can you see Yiyi off for me?"
Song Yin: "I'll do it!"
Jiang Mian: "You're not going to let a child see her off, are you?"
Jing Yiyi still smiled, but her heart felt bitter. "It's fine, I can go back by myself."
Jiang Mian: "Then I'll see you off."
"I'll do it," Ye Yi sighed inwardly.
If he still couldn't see Jiang Mian's intentions after this, he'd been living in vain.
He stood up first. "Let's go."
The two of them went out.
Only Song Yin and Jiang Mian were left in the living room.
They exchanged a glance. Before Jiang Mian could say anything, Song Yin immediately turned and ran upstairs without a word.
Jiang Mian: "..."
She hoped her future children wouldn't be like Song Yin.
Outside the door.
Jing Yiyi took a deep breath. "Actually, if you didn't want to, you didn't have to see me off."
Ye Yi raised an eyebrow. "How do you know I didn't want to?"
"I..."
Just his words alone made Jing Yiyi's heart race.
Ye Yi put his hands in his pockets and said casually, "It's been a while."
"It has been a while."
She silently told herself: It hasn't actually been that long, only 35 days.
After saying that, silence fell between them again.
Jing Yiyi lowered her head, looking at the road ahead. Perhaps the atmosphere was just right, making her want to try one more time.
"Ye Yi," she said.
"Mm?" Ye Yi hummed in response.
"I like you."
It wasn't the first time she'd said it, and this time it came out smoothly.
The feeling was completely different from the first time.
She wasn't nervous, only calm.
Ye Yi looked up at the sky and smiled, a hint of helplessness in his expression.
"Jing Yiyi." This time, it was his turn to call her name.
"Yes?"
"I don't want to be in a relationship."
Both of them were very calm this time.
"Then when will you want to be in a relationship?" Before he could answer, Jing Yiyi added, "Just because you don't want to now, doesn't mean you won't in the future, right?"
Ye Yi curled his lips. He got along with Lu Cong partly because they were both free-spirited people who disliked being tied down.
And they never stopped for anyone...
Seeing that he wasn't speaking, Jing Yiyi continued, "Jiang Mian, you don't have a chance. She already has a baby, and I don't agree with you trying to compete. Besides, you might not be able to win against Ji Zhixiu."
Ye Yi: "..."