"Who do you think you are?"
Shen Jun grumbled, looking up as the voice called out.
Upon seeing the approaching person, he frowned, a hint of uncertainty in his eyes, "Shen…?"
Wasn't the eldest young master of the Shen family supposed to be abroad doing research? How did he come back so suddenly? There was no news.
Shen Muyuan, dressed in a black trench coat with his hands in his pockets, stood by with a gentle demeanor, his long eyebrows and thin lips framing a refined face.
He nodded at Shen Jun's question, interrupting him, his eyes twinkling with amusement, "Yes, Young Master Shen, you still remember me."
Damn it, this was awkward.
Compared to Shen Muyuan, his self-proclaimed heir apparent to the Shen family paled in comparison. This man was the genuine article, a true scion of a prominent family.
Shen Jun felt caught in a dilemma. He chuckled awkwardly, "I wouldn't dare presume to be called 'Young Master Shen' by you. Had I known you also fancied this type, I certainly wouldn't have competed with you for her."
With that, he pushed Jiang Mian towards Shen Muyuan, "Enjoy yourself today, Young Master Shen. I'll be taking my leave."
He slunk away with his subordinates, thinking to himself as he walked, what rotten luck he had today. First Chang Qin, and now Shen Muyuan!
Truly unlucky.
His subordinate trotted along behind him, "Young Master, who was that? Why were you afraid of him?"
Shen Jun slapped him, "You ignorant fool. Was I afraid of him?! I was showing him respect! Respecting everyone is a virtue of ours!"
"Yes, yes, yes…"
He muttered to himself, it was already a miracle that the young master wasn't arrogant, and he talked about respect…
Being prompted by that question, Shen Jun was reminded of painful past memories.
For a while, he had been arrogant due to his family's wealth, chasing after girls without restraint. Once, to show off and impress a girl, he had made a grand gesture in front of others, only to be thoroughly embarrassed by Shen Muyuan and Ji Zhixiu.
He lost face and pride. From then on, he avoided those two whenever he saw them. Thinking of this, Shen Jun spat, "Neither of those two is any good!"
"Then, Young Master… that girl?"
"What girl! There are plenty of beautiful women around!"
…
Shen Muyuan quickly reached out and steadied Jiang Mian, "Are you alright?"
As he spoke, he paused again. They were too close, and he could clearly smell her perfume, a pleasant, faint, and not overbearing scent. He could even clearly see the small mole at the corner of her eye, a single dot of red on her delicate cheek. It wasn't jarring, but rather charming.
Jiang Mian shook her head and took a step back, "Thank you for helping me out."
Although Jiang Mian didn't know him, she had a feeling he was a very gentle person.
She brushed a stray strand of hair from her forehead, the earlier sense of disgust fading, replaced by a sweet smile on her face.
He suddenly smiled, "No need to be polite, he's a repeat offender."
He looked down at the bag Jiang Mian was carrying, and for some unknown reason, impulsively asked, "Are you leaving?"
Jiang Mian glanced at the time, "Yes, goodbye."
"Goodbye."
He watched Jiang Mian walk away, a complex emotion stirring within him. The lingering scent of her perfume seemed to still be in the air.
Shen Muyuan gave a self-deprecating laugh. Had he really been out of touch with women for too long in the research institute?
He turned his gaze back and took a couple of steps towards the bar, then tapped his finger on the counter, asking, "Why isn't your General Manager Chang here today?"
The manager, who had been working there for many years, recognized Shen Muyuan. He replied cheerfully, "General Manager Chang is at home accompanying his wife."
Right, he had a family.
Shen Muyuan sighed. He had intended to meet up with an old friend after getting off the plane, but it seemed that was not to be.
He abandoned the idea of calling Ji Zhixiu out and looked at the car keys in his hand, "It looks like I can only head home for now."
Shen Muyuan's return was sudden. He was supposed to come back earlier, but due to some unexpected developments in his research, his stay was extended by nearly a year.
Once he obtained the final results, Shen Muyuan rushed back from the US.
He drove home.
"Oh my! Young Master!"
"Madam! Come quickly!"
"The Young Master is back!"
Shen Muyuan smiled, "It's me, Granny Wang. Please don't be so excited."
Granny Wang, the housekeeper, wrung her hands, how could she not be excited? Everyone in the Shen household, from top to bottom, adored the gentle and courteous Shen Muyuan.
Upon hearing the commotion, Madam Shen came downstairs. Seeing the person standing in the living room, she covered her mouth, her eyes filled with surprise, "Muyuan…"
Shen Muyuan looked at her and nodded slightly, "Mom, it's me, I'm back."
Madam Shen laughed and cried, "Why did you come back so suddenly, my child? Have you eaten? Airplane meals are never good. What do you want to eat? I'll cook it myself."
"You've given us such a big surprise."
"Quick, sit, sit! Pour the Young Master some tea!"
Shen Muyuan sat on the sofa, going along with the flow, "My research project has yielded results, the mission is complete, so I've returned to the country. I won't be going back from now on."
Despite the professor's repeated requests for him to stay, Shen Muyuan had decided to return to China.
"Your father is still at the company. I'll call him right now. He'll be overjoyed to know you're back."
Madam Shen took out her phone.
Shen Muyuan asked, "Where is Mianmian?"
"She's on set. You know your sister wants to be a star."
As she spoke, she dialed the number, "Honey, hurry home, our son is back!"
"Yes, it's true, we're waiting for you!"
After hanging up, Madam Shen smiled, "Your father will be back shortly."
Shen Muyuan rubbed his forehead, "Why is Dad still at the company so late?"
"When you were abroad, he had no one to help him out. Now that you're back, your father can finally rest."
Madam Shen peeled a tangerine and handed it to him, "You not being here, your father thought of you every day. Now that you're back, his heart can finally be at ease."
Shen Muyuan took the tangerine, meticulously removing the pith, "I must thank you, Mom, for speaking up for me back then so Dad would agree to let me go abroad."
"We support your pursuit of dreams. Your father was just reluctant to part with you for a while. Now that you're back, have you considered your own future?" she teased.
Shen Muyuan maintained his gentle smile, neither refusing nor agreeing, "When it comes to relationships, it's best to let fate take its course. When the time is right, what's meant to be will happen."
"Muyuan! Come here and let me see you!"
His voice preceded his arrival as Father Shen strode into the house. Shen Muyuan stood up and embraced his father.
"Good, good! You're finally back!" Father Shen patted his shoulder and sat down.
"You're not going back, are you?"
"No, Dad, I'll stay home to take care of you and Mom from now on."
Father Shen couldn't have been more pleased with his son. His first wife had passed away early, and he had raised this child alone. He was obedient and sensible, filial and intelligent.
Their father-son relationship had always been one of mentor and friend. Hearing this, Father Shen said with a laugh, "You kept this from me, this is truly a great gift!"
Shen Muyuan said gently, "Actually, I was supposed to be late, but I finished ahead of schedule. I wanted to rush back to celebrate the New Year with Dad."
"You two father and son, you forget about me when you start talking."
Father Shen glanced at his wife, his eyes smiling, "How could we? We're family, how could we forget you? Sit down and let's talk."
"Alright, it's this late already. Muyuan just got off the plane. Let him go to bed first. He's back, he's not going anywhere. We can talk more tomorrow."
Father Shen tapped his head, "Look at me, I'm so happy. Your mother is right, you should go upstairs and rest. Your room is just as you left it; it's been cleaned every day."
"Then I'll head upstairs. You both should rest early too." Shen Muyuan did seem a little tired. He stood up.
"Go, go."
"Granny Wang, go and bring the Young Master a glass of milk."
"Understood, Madam."
After he left, Father Shen held Madam Shen's hand. Madam Shen asked, "Now that he's back, are you finally at ease?"
"At ease, at ease. For our son's marriage, Madam, you'll have to put in more effort. I'm clueless about such things."
"I asked him. Muyuan probably isn't in a hurry. Since he's back, we can take our time."
Father Shen nodded, "With you here, I feel at ease."
The couple exchanged a knowing smile.
…
Jiang Mian confirmed that her roommates had all safely arrived home before putting down her phone and opening her closet to find pajamas, intending to take a shower.
She had been moderate in her drinking tonight and was still quite clear-headed. She hadn't dwelled on the little incident at the bar; even without someone to help her, she would have found a way to extricate herself.
She found a set of pajamas and suddenly remembered she had left her hair tie in Ji Zhixiu's study.
It was quite late, and the man hadn't returned yet.
Fan Cheng had called her earlier, saying that President Ji would be back late tonight. Jiang Mian understood what he meant and instructed Aunt Song to prepare some hangover soup.
She got up and walked to the study, turned on the light, and searched for her hair tie. This hair tie was a gift from Chang Min when she was filming, it was very cute, and she liked it very much.
She clearly remembered putting it down somewhere in the study last time, so why wasn't it there? Jiang Mian frowned slightly and opened the desk drawer.
Inside, she found a hair accessory that seemed out of place.
Jiang Mian's eyes flickered. She picked it up and held it in her palm, looking at it. Perhaps because the study wasn't heated, Jiang Mian felt a bit cold.
She looked at the faded hair accessory and recalled what Shen Tingyu had said to her. She paused for a moment, then placed it back in its original position and slowly closed the drawer.
When Ji Zhixiu returned that night, Jiang Mian was already in bed, watching a drama with a bag of fish jerky in her arms.
The man leaned against the doorway, pinching his brow, "I drank a bit too much tonight. I'll sleep in the next room."
"Are you drunk? Did you drink the hangover soup?" she asked.
"I drank it, I'm not drunk," Ji Zhixiu loosened his tie, his voice slightly hoarse. In the night, it sounded particularly sexy and charming.
He seemed slightly displeased with her for staring at her tablet without looking at him.
Jiang Mian felt that the male and female leads in the drama were so good-looking, but now that Ji Zhixiu was back, she couldn't focus on the show anymore.
She licked her lips, shifted her gaze from the tablet, and put it down. Barefoot, she got out of bed and walked towards him step by step, "You want to sleep in a separate room from me?"
Ji Zhixiu's gaze fixed on her fair, tender feet, his voice deepening, "No, we won't."
He had initially intended to avoid her smelling of alcohol, but now he wished he could imbue her with his scent entirely.
He scooped her up amidst her startled cry, his fingers holding her foot, transferring warmth to her, "The floor is cold."
"There's a carpet…"
She looked at his earlobes, which were slightly flushed from drinking. To this day, she had never seen Ji Zhixiu drunk…
Jiang Mian hesitated for two seconds and then hugged him, "Should we shower first?"
Ji Zhixiu strode forward and placed her on the bed, his gaze lingering on her long legs. He hadn't quite heard what she said and responded with a "mm."
Only after Jiang Mian snuggled under the covers did Ji Zhixiu move his gaze away. He nodded, "I'll go take a shower."
Twenty minutes later, Ji Zhixiu emerged.
Jiang Mian was still awake. She patted the side of the bed and tilted her chin, signaling him to come over quickly.
Such an invitation was hard to refuse. Ji Zhixiu climbed onto the bed, and then he heard a meow, followed by a blur of movement and a thud.
Ji Zhixiu frowned, "Don't let that rascal on the bed next time."
With that, he stretched out an arm and pulled her close, easily cradling her in his embrace. His chin rested on her forehead, "Mianmian."
Jiang Mian reached up to hug him back. She moved her lips, wanting to say something.
Then she heard his voice above her, playfully asking, "Can't sleep, want to do something else?"
His hands were already igniting a fire.