Sang Zhi didn't notice anything unusual.
After hanging up the phone, Sang Zhi pulled up her phone calendar and glanced at it. Calculating the time, she realized that without noticing, it had been nearly a week since she last brought lunch to Duan Jiaxu.
Somehow, probably because of Duan Jiaxu's tone earlier, Sang Zhi felt inexplicably guilty.
Afraid she might forget about it, Sang Zhi specifically set an alarm before going to bed. The next day, after waking up, she found an interesting cooking video and watched it several times while lounging in bed before finally heading to the kitchen.
As she cooked, Sang Zhi tasted the food and felt that today's dishes were better than before.
She licked the sauce from the corner of her lips.
Thinking to herself, maybe she could tell Duan Jiaxu later that the reason she hadn't come over recently was because she had been diligently practicing her cooking skills?
Her mind wandered for a while.
Sang Zhi carefully arranged the bento boxes, packed them into a bag, and left the house. She timed it perfectly, taking the subway and arriving at Duan Jiaxu's company building right at lunchtime.
Having been here many times, Sang Zhi didn't ask Duan Jiaxu to come down and meet her, instead taking the elevator up directly.
Probably because it was lunchtime, the studio door was left open.
Sang Zhi walked in but didn't see Duan Jiaxu at his desk. She blinked, took out her phone, and sent him a message.
One of the men noticed her, paused for a moment, then abruptly nudged the person next to him before proactively saying, "Sister-in-law, the boss went to the restroom. Please have a seat for a moment."
Being called "sister-in-law" by these men who were older than her still made Sang Zhi feel a bit awkward. She nodded, walked over to Duan Jiaxu's seat, and sat down, taking out both bento boxes from the bag.
Just as Sang Zhi opened the lids, someone asked, "Sister-in-law, how come you haven't been over recently?"
She turned around.
Just as she was about to answer, Sang Zhi suddenly noticed Duan Jiaxu's figure out of the corner of her eye. She immediately swallowed her words and shifted her gaze to him.
Duan Jiaxu walked over, looking down at her: "How long have you been here?"
Sang Zhi: "Just arrived."
He pulled over a nearby chair and sat down, suddenly calling her: "Zhizhi."
Sang Zhi looked up: "Huh?"
Duan Jiaxu glanced toward the back and said lazily, "Someone asked you a question. Why aren't you answering?"
"..."
Her attention, which had been diverted by him, suddenly returned.
Unsure if Duan Jiaxu was upset, Sang Zhi hesitantly stared at him for a few seconds before cautiously and slowly giving the excuse she had thought of earlier: "I thought my cooking wasn't very good."
Duan Jiaxu: "Hmm?"
"So I've been diligently practicing my cooking skills recently." Sang Zhi didn't dare meet his eyes, afraid he would catch her lying. "Try it, today's dishes are better than before."
As soon as she finished speaking, the man who had asked her earlier let out an understanding "oh": "So that's why! We thought—"
Before he could finish, the man next to him covered his mouth.
Sang Zhi asked blankly: "Thought what?"
As if he hadn't heard them, Duan Jiaxu picked up his chopsticks, his expression gentle: "If you don't want to do it, then don't. If you're bored, go out and have fun with your friends."
"..."
Though these words would normally sound perfectly fine, at this moment, Sang Zhi inexplicably found them somewhat eerie. Moreover, this man always wore the same expression whether he was angry or happy, making it impossible for her to tell.
Sang Zhi swallowed and said earnestly: "It's not that I don't want to."
Duan Jiaxu turned to look at her.
Sang Zhi added: "I really want to."After a pause, she turned the tables and accused him, "You just don’t want me to come over, do you?"
Duan Jiaxu’s brows relaxed slightly. He glanced at the group of men nearby, who were now straining to eavesdrop, and chuckled, "What nonsense. Hurry up and eat."
Sang Zhi couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.
After the meal, while Duan Jiaxu was out throwing away the trash, she approached the youngest and most loose-lipped guy there and asked a few questions. It didn’t take long for her to get the answer.
The guy said, "Sis, since you haven’t been around lately, we all thought you and the boss had broken up."
Sang Zhi: "..."
The guy continued, "And the boss has seemed really down recently, so we figured you dumped him."
Sang Zhi: "?"
"After all, I heard you say he’s from the ’80s," the guy explained. "A man pushing forty who’s still unmarried must have some insecurities. Sis, be a little nicer to him."
Sang Zhi fell silent for a few seconds. "I probably said he’s an ’80s baby—he was born in ’89."
"..."
Sang Zhi never expected that her absence over the past few days would lead to such rumors.
—The promising, car-owning, home-owning Duan Jiaxu, dumped by a college girl because he was old and losing his looks.
She instantly understood why Duan Jiaxu had asked her to bring him food.
He must have overheard their conversation.
Sang Zhi returned to Duan Jiaxu’s spot and played on her phone.
Soon, Duan Jiaxu came back from outside and brought her a drink.
Poking the straw into the cup, Sang Zhi took a sip and occasionally glanced at him. Remembering what had just happened, she found it amusing and couldn’t help smiling.
Duan Jiaxu looked at her. "What’s so funny?"
Sang Zhi giggled to herself for a while. Her eyes curved like crescent moons as she reached out to poke his cheek, revealing the two small dimples at the corners of her lips. "An old man with an age complex."
"..."
"It’s fine," Sang Zhi comforted him. "You may be old, but you haven’t lost your looks."
"..."
A month into the new semester, the National Day holiday arrived.
Sang Zhi had booked a flight home in advance. On the 30th, after her last class, she boarded the airport shuttle bus.
She arrived at Nanwu Airport just after noon.
Since she hadn’t brought much luggage, Sang Zhi didn’t check anything in and only carried a small backpack. Following the exit signs, she quickly spotted Duan Jiaxu waiting outside.
Duan Jiaxu walked over and took her hand. "Let’s go grab something to eat."
Sang Zhi checked the time and asked, "Do you have to go back to the office later?"
Duan Jiaxu: "Yeah."
Sang Zhi: "Do you get time off for National Day?"
Duan Jiaxu: "Three days."
Sang Zhi gave an "oh."
The two left the airport.
Holding Duan Jiaxu’s hand, Sang Zhi followed him toward the parking area. Not familiar with the route, she didn’t pay much attention and instead kept her eyes on her phone. Before long, she suddenly heard someone call from behind, "Sang Zhi?"
Hearing the voice, Sang Zhi turned around.
A tall, lean young man came into view.
It was her classmate, Fu Zhengchu.
They hadn’t seen each other too long ago—at a class gathering over the summer break.
Compared to his middle school days, Fu Zhengchu hadn’t changed much. His features had just matured, and his style had become more grown-up, but he still had a sunny, slightly goofy vibe.
Seeing he hadn’t mistaken her, Fu Zhengchu grinned. "You’re back home for the holiday?"
Sang Zhi stopped and nodded. "What are you doing here?"Fu Zhengchu: "My grandmother is arriving, I'm here to pick her up."
Duan Jiaxu also stopped walking, his gaze lightly sweeping over Fu Zhengchu with a thoughtful expression. The next second, his eyebrows lifted slightly as if he had thought of something, and the corners of his mouth curled up in a faint, ambiguous smile.
Only then did Fu Zhengchu notice the man standing beside Sang Zhi.
He looked at Duan Jiaxu and politely asked, "And this is...?"
Sang Zhi answered honestly, "My boyfriend."
As if finding Duan Jiaxu somewhat familiar, Fu Zhengchu stared at him for several seconds. Worried this might seem too abrupt, he lightly coughed and averted his gaze: "Then I won't disturb you two. I'm going to pick up my grandmother."
Sang Zhi waved at him, speaking very politely: "Go ahead, let's keep in touch when we have time."
Afterwards, she continued walking forward with Duan Jiaxu.
They hadn't taken more than a few steps when Fu Zhengchu called out to her from behind, this time with a tone of disbelief, as if his entire worldview had been shattered: "Sang... Sang Zhi!"
Sang Zhi turned back again: "Huh?"
But Fu Zhengchu's gaze wasn't fixed on her - instead, he was staring straight at Duan Jiaxu, as if he had remembered something. He looked like he'd been struck by lightning, his lips moving slightly before finally managing to squeeze out just three words: "Never mind."
Sang Zhi was also baffled: "Then you should go pick up your grandmother quickly. Don't keep an elderly person waiting."
He remained silent for a moment, then nodded.
This time, Fu Zhengchu didn't say anything more and turned to enter the airport.
After he left, Duan Jiaxu pinched her fingertips and said leisurely, "If I remember correctly, didn't you make this boy cry before?"
Sang Zhi muttered: "That was so long ago, I'd almost forgotten about it if you hadn't brought it up."
Duan Jiaxu repeated her earlier words slowly: "Let's... keep... in... touch."
Sang Zhi didn't think she was in the wrong and couldn't help saying: "It was just a polite remark, can't you tell? Besides, he has a girlfriend now and stopped liking me long ago. Last time we met, he told me it was just youthful ignorance."
Duan Jiaxu looked nonchalant, dragging out his tone: "Last time... you met."
"..."
"How come you're meeting other men behind your brother's back."
Sang Zhi said expressionlessly: "It was a class reunion."
She frowned: "Why do you take every opportunity to pick on me now?"
"What picking on you." Duan Jiaxu laughed, "I just have to be careful - it's an old husband with a young wife situation."
"..."
Seeing that he wanted to continue bringing up these irrelevant old matters, Sang Zhi proactively changed the subject, bringing up Fu Zhengchu's earlier reaction: "When he called me the second time just now, his expression seemed really strange."
Duan Jiaxu: "It was strange."
Sang Zhi couldn't understand him: "Why did he react like that? That expression was like he'd suddenly discovered I'd gotten a sex change or plastic surgery."
Duan Jiaxu said amusedly: "It's not that serious."
Sang Zhi was startled: "You know?"
"Mm."
"How do you know?"
"You know too."
"I don't know."
"Think about it."
For a moment, Sang Zhi really couldn't remember and said blankly: "What is it?"
"This classmate of yours, I remember - the first time he saw me, I was meeting your teacher on behalf of your brother." Duan Jiaxu patiently reminded her, "So he probably thought I was your brother."
"..."
"Now he probably thinks we're committing incest."
OpenNovel