Chapter 19: Not Very Familiar

The encounter at the café that afternoon was indeed unexpected for Jiang Chengxiao.

The little girl actually went on a blind date. How old was she? Was she really in such a hurry to go on a blind date? Just thinking about it made Jiang Chengxiao’s teeth itch.

Luckily, the person she was set up with turned out to be a jerk. Otherwise, if Song Xilan had shown any interest or even a little affection for her date, Jiang Chengxiao wasn’t sure if he could have held himself back from rushing over and taking the person away.

And to make things worse, Jiang Jingru had to cause trouble, almost making his little girl misunderstand him.

Luckily, he was clever enough to seize the opportunity and successfully arranged to spend some alone time with her. The candied hawthorn on a stick, of which he only ate one, was still sitting on the windowsill in his hotel room!

By all rights, he should have waited a few more days before looking for her, but the cough and that one desire to see her were too strong to resist.

Jiang Chengxiao thought, what if the little girl went on another blind date? What if this one wasn’t as bad as the last one? What if she ended up talking to someone else first? He couldn’t bear that outcome.

So, he packed up and went to the place where she worked.

Song Xilan’s colleague, Juanzi, with wide eyes, nudged her with her elbow and whispered in her ear, “Is this your friend? He’s really handsome!”

Song Xilan lowered her head and continued to tally the accounts. “Not very familiar. Otherwise, can you go greet him for me?”

“Sure!” Juanzi happily walked over. “Comrade, our products are directly from the factory. They’re freshly made. You can take a look and see if you’d like to buy something.”

Jiang Chengxiao was pretending to examine the goods on the shelf while waiting for Song Xilan to come over. He had already prepared his lines: “I’m new here. I wanted to buy some local specialties to send to my friends. The people at the hotel recommended this place. I didn’t expect to run into you here…”

But when he turned around, it was awkward—someone else was approaching!

“Comrade, you’ve come to the right place! Our Limin Foods is famous here. For example, these walnut crisps, soda biscuits, and Sachima, are perfect gifts for the New Year. They’re ideal for giving to friends.”

Jiang Chengxiao had already said his piece, so he had no choice but to pick out a few bags.

While Juanzi was busy packing his purchase, he hesitated and slowly moved closer to Song Xilan. “You’re pretty busy, huh?”

Song Xilan gave him a stiff face, not looking up. She grunted a short “Hmm.”

Jiang Chengxiao was puzzled. This didn’t make sense. The last time they parted, she had waved him off with a smile, saying goodbye. Why the cold attitude now?

“What’s wrong? Who made you angry?”

Song Xilan stiffly muttered, “No one.” She turned away and started organizing the goods on the other side.

From behind her, Jiang Chengxiao could tell that her shoulders were tense, clearly not as indifferent as she was pretending to be.

Could it be because he hadn’t gone to find her for the past couple of days? Was she upset about that?

Jiang Chengxiao tried to explain, “I did want to come find you these past few days, but I had some work to take care of, some paperwork to handle. Also, I forgot to ask for your contact information last time. If I’ve upset you in any way, you can just tell me.”

Finally, Song Xilan turned around to face him, but her brows were furrowed tightly. “Comrade, you’ve helped me, and I’ve helped you too. So, I think we’re square. But there’s a difference between men and women. The way you’re coming to find me could easily cause misunderstandings and trouble for me.”

Jiang Chengxiao’s heart sank, and his face darkened. To her, his presence was actually a burden?

He could understand this feeling. Back when he was still in Jing City, because of his family background and appearance, young girls often came up to him, writing him letters, giving him gifts, and expressing their affection.

But he never had any feelings for those girls. Their actions didn’t make him happy; instead, they annoyed him and became a nuisance.

At that time, he was young and full of arrogance, not understanding the preciousness of someone’s genuine feelings, and never showing a good face to anyone.

Now he finally understood how painful it was to be treated coldly.

The bullets he fired many years ago were now hitting him squarely in the forehead.

If he continued to entangle himself, it would only make her dislike him even more.

“Sorry for the trouble. I’ll leave now.” Jiang Chengxiao picked up the packaged biscuits and walked out with a sense of melancholy.

[I really don’t get where this story is going.]

[Weren’t they fine when they met last time? Did something happen that I don’t know about? I didn’t even go to the bathroom!]

[Yeah, Song Xilan’s change in attitude is so strange. Even if you’re going to sentence someone, at least give them a reason!]

The sorrow on Jiang Chengxiao’s face made Song Xilan feel a little uncomfortable. She realized that the people around her couldn’t see what was going on inside her heart. She had let her imagination run wild, thinking that Jiang Chengxiao was the father of Jiang Jingru’s child and had gotten upset with him because of that.

But was her thinking right?

Without even asking, was it really fair to make such a judgment?

As she thought about this, she quickly chased after him. “Wait!”

Jiang Chengxiao turned around with a puzzled expression. “You’re calling me?”

Song Xilan nodded and walked up slowly. “I want to ask you something.”

Jiang Chengxiao’s face showed a hint of joy. As long as she was still willing to talk to him, there was hope. “What is it? Just ask.”

Song Xilan thought for a moment and spoke, “This morning, I went to the hospital…” She used this as an introduction to bring up the matter of meeting Jiang Jingru.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Chengxiao’s expression immediately became tense. “Went to the hospital? Why? Are you feeling unwell?”

[Haha, perfect answer to the life-threatening question.]

[Our little Jiang is too good.]

[It’s clear when someone cares about you. I just want to kick my own guy out now.]

[Jealousy has turned me into a monster.]

Song Xilan froze for a moment, a warm feeling spreading inside her. She smiled lightly. “I’m fine. My aunt works in the obstetrics department. My mom asked me to find her.”

Jiang Chengxiao nodded in relief. “Oh, you went to the hospital to find your aunt. Then what happened?”

“I ran into Jiang Jingru at the hospital, in the obstetrics department.” After saying this, she carefully observed Jiang Chengxiao’s expression.

But Jiang Chengxiao’s response wasn’t what she expected. He asked, “Do you know her?”

“Uh, I’ve seen her perform before. I mean, she…” The next words, Song Xilan found hard to say.