Chapter 046

The car moved forward.

Lu Jin was focused on driving and didn’t seem to notice that his ex-girlfriend’s face had suddenly turned red.

He Ye sank into the spacious and comfortable passenger seat, her head leaning against the window.

So, even if two people who have been in love break up, even if they meet again after many years, how can they truly become complete strangers?

A lot has happened, and some things will always stay in your memory.

Just like how she thought of their first kiss when she saw the box of chewing gum, he must have remembered it too, which is why he could immediately guess why she seemed distracted.

He could have pretended not to notice, but instead, he brought it up.

He did it on purpose, knowing exactly how she would react.

“He Ye, I like you like this, so soft.”

The 18-year-old Lu Jin had already become quite bold. In between kisses, he would kiss her ears and say things that made her even more shy and weak.

He Ye felt her body heat up, and she angrily rolled down the car window.

A damp, cold wind blew in immediately, and because the car was moving, the wind felt stronger and colder than when she had been standing outside.

The heat she felt disappeared, and the fresh air made her feel more relaxed.

Lu Jin glanced at her and warned, “Be careful not to catch a cold.”

He Ye rolled the window back up.

The wind died down, and silence returned to the closed car.

Lu Jin glanced at her face, then looked ahead and asked, “Are you mad?”

He Ye played dumb: “Why would I be mad? The smell of spicy hot pot is too strong, so I needed some fresh air.”

As she spoke, she grabbed the chewing gum on the armrest, unscrewed the lid, took out a piece, put it in her mouth, and acted as if nothing had happened.

Lu Jin laughed.

The residential area was just ahead.

He Ye shifted from leaning to sitting and pointed to the intersection ahead. “Drop me off here.”

Lu Jin asked, “Are you going to help out at the fruit shop? If not, I can drive straight into the underground garage.”

He Ye replied, “Yes.”

The couple running the fruit shop worked until after 10 PM before they finished. When they got home, they barely had time to talk after washing up.

Lu Jin stopped the car on the roadside.

As He Ye was about to get out, she heard him ask, “When are you going to tell Uncle He that you and I work at the same company, on the same team?” 

He Ye, facing away from him, bit her lip. “I don’t want to tell him. If I do, he’ll ask you to take care of me again.”

Lu Jin replied, “Alright, I’ll also remind my parents not to mention that I work at Blue Ocean when they go buy fruit.”

He Ye added, “And tell Zhou Xiangming too. He talks the most.”

Lu Jin teased, “I thought you liked talkative types like him.”

He Ye: “…”

She slammed the car door shut.

The driver in the front seat seemed to smile before driving away.

He Ye had only been helping in the fruit shop for half an hour when He Yong and his wife told her to go home and rest.

He Ye took a shower to wash off the spicy hot pot smell and, after drying her hair, noticed a message from Zhou Xiangming: [It’s been a while since we last met. There’s a lantern festival on the old street tomorrow night. Want to go?]

He Ye: [Just the two of us?]

Though she asked, she already knew that Zhou Xiangming was probably trying to set something up.

Zhou Xiangming: [Hahaha, what fun would it be with just us two? Let’s invite more people. I know Lu Jin, so you can bring Zhu Qing too. That way, it won’t be awkward with two guys and one girl.] 

Before He Ye could reply, another message appeared.

Zhou Xiangming: [Are you still nervous around Lu Jin? If so, forget I said anything.]

He Ye: …

She saw through his playful provocation right away. If it weren’t for Zhou Xiangming’s obvious wish to meet Zhu Qing, He Ye would have ignored him.

He Ye: [I’ll ask Zhu Qing. If she agrees, we’ll go. Otherwise, no.]

Zhou Xiangming: [Okay, I’ll check with Lu Jin too. If he’s shy, I’ll step in and be the gentleman for you two.]

He Ye, curious, asked: [Where’s Li Liang? Weren’t you two always together before?]

Zhou Xiangming: [He’s got a girlfriend, and they’ve already got plans for the Lantern Festival.]

He Ye continued to test: [Aren’t you in a hurry?]

Zhou Xiangming: [Why should I be? I’m tall, rich, and handsome. It won’t be too late for me to find a wife at 30.]

He Ye didn’t reply. Someone like Zhou Xiangming needed someone like Zhu Qing to challenge him.

She took a screenshot of the conversation and sent it to Zhu Qing.

Zhu Qing responded with a vomiting emoji: [That Zhou guy is getting more shameless.]

He Ye laughed: [So, do you want to go?]

Zhu Qing replied: [Of course! Why not use a free photographer? I’ll remind him to bring his camera. The old street should look nice tomorrow night. Let’s go to my cousin’s and change into Hanfu and take lots of photos while we’re still young.] 

He Ye felt the excitement. Zhu Qing always knew how to have fun and enjoy life.

He Ye, on her own, didn’t have the motivation, but with her good friends, she was willing to enjoy herself.

However…

He Ye: [According to Zhou Xiangming, Lu Jin will be there too.]

Zhu Qing: [So what? Are you worried that if you look too good, people will think you dressed up just to impress him? What a joke. You dumped him, not the other way around. How full of himself would he have to be to think that?]

He Ye was surprised.

Was Lu Jin that full of himself?

“I may not be as strong as you in refusing to get back together.”

“I’m not really chasing after you. I know my limits.”

“Otherwise, I wouldn’t even dare to think about it again.”

These three lines he once said to her, trying to gain sympathy, echoed in her mind, and He Ye smiled.

She wasn’t worried about what Lu Jin might think. She was more concerned about his nervous glances.

Even when she wore everyday clothes, she could feel him looking at her. If she wore Hanfu…

Never mind. With Zhu Qing and Zhou Xiangming there, as long as she wasn’t alone with Lu Jin, it wouldn’t matter if he sneaked a glance.

In addition to the lantern festival, there were also many delicious snacks on the ancient street. The four of us agreed to meet at the south entrance of the street at 6 pm.

In the afternoon, He Ye went to the Hanfu shop to meet Zhu Qing first.

Back then, when they were still thinking like high school students and didn’t want to spend money, the three girls had taken advantage of Zhu Qing’s cousin. This time, He Ye bought a clothing and makeup package in advance.

The cousin, who had been a mother for many years, still looked young and energetic. She laughed and scolded He Ye: “Why are you being so polite? In my eyes, you and Xiao Qing are like my sisters.”

Zhu Qing said, “Forget it, sister. You don’t know that Xiao Ye’s annual salary now is almost the same as yours.”

She held up four fingers to her cousin.

Her cousin took an exaggerated breath, and several staff members in the store looked at He Ye as if she were someone important.

He Ye smiled and said: “That was after I became a full-time employee. Right now, I’m still in the probation period.”

She still had to go to school to attend the graduation ceremony in March to get her diploma and degree certificate.

Zhu Qing proudly said, “Anyway, our Xiao Ye is amazing!”

Being beautiful, good at her job, and having a nice personality, Zhu Qing wasn’t surprised at all that Lu Jin had been thinking about He Ye for so many years. If she were a man, Lu Jin wouldn’t have had any chance at all. She would’ve used their childhood friendship to make He Ye her girlfriend long ago.

After putting on makeup and changing clothes, they took a taxi. From afar, they saw traffic jammed in front of the ancient street. It was crowded with people, and almost all the young girls were wearing Hanfu.

The driver asked them, “It’s hard to move forward. Should we get off here?”

It was only about 100 meters, so the two sisters agreed with a smile.

Zhu Qing held onto He Ye’s arm and asked, “You didn’t tell them we’d wear Hanfu, right?”

He Ye shook her head.

Zhu Qing chuckled, “Let’s just walk over and pretend we don’t know each other. See if they can recognize us.”

He Ye looked at the group of girls in Hanfu walking towards the entrance and thought it might be hard for the two guys to pick them out.

When they were about ten meters away, they saw Lu Jin and Zhou Xiangming standing under a tree.

Lu Jin was wearing a black coat and looking casually across the street, while Zhou Xiangming, in a bright blue top, was glancing around. He still hadn’t noticed them, even as they got closer.

Zhu Qing quietly complained, “Look at him, what a typical blind man.”

He Ye lowered her eyes and smiled.

She was on the outside, holding Zhu Qing’s arm.

The closer they got, the more the playful tension built. He Ye kept her head down slightly, focusing on walking to avoid eye contact.

But she could still see the legs of the two men out of the corner of her eye.

When they were just two meters away, Lu Jin stepped forward, checking his phone like he was looking at the time.

Finally, they passed by him.

Just as He Ye was about to laugh, she felt a light flick on her hair bun.

The touch was obvious, and He Ye turned back instinctively.

At the entrance of the ancient street, there was a camphor tree that was two or three hundred years old. The tree had lush leaves, with a small electronic light strip wrapped around the trunk to decorate the night. Tonight, colorful lights were hanging from the branches.

Lu Jin stood under the lights, looking at her quietly, his gaze deep and focused.

Even though there were strangers behind him and tourists trying to push through, He Ye could still spot him right away. He stood tall and slim, his cold, distant look seeming out of place with the lively, festive atmosphere.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she was the first to break eye contact, turning her face away.

Zhou Xiangming finally noticed the two women in Hanfu because of Lu Jin’s small action. He walked over with a hand on Lu Jin’s shoulder, casually smiling at the two girls. “He Ye looks like a lady in this outfit. You should change into a maid’s outfit.”

Zhu Qing glanced at his flashy jacket and said disdainfully, “Do you know what you look like?”

Zhou Xiangming smiled confidently: “A playboy?”

Zhu Qing smiled even more brightly, “Like a streetwalker.”

Zhou Xiangming: …

Lu Jin simply stepped aside, letting go of Zhou Xiangming’s arm.

Zhu Qing bent over, laughing. He Ye was a bit slow to catch on to Lu Jin’s reaction but laughed too, causing the hairpin on her head to shake.

The next second, Zhou Xiangming tried to grab Zhu Qing, but she was already expecting it. She squealed and pushed through the crowd, running into the ancient street.

There were so many people ahead, and within seconds, He Ye couldn’t see the two anymore.

She hurried after them.

Lu Jin walked up to her, pointing to a shop diagonally ahead, “Over there.”

He Ye stood on tiptoe and saw Zhou Xiangming holding Zhu Qing by the neck, pinching her like a duck to make her behave. He was careful not to mess up her hair, so he just stayed there waiting for them.

He Ye thought, “Isn’t this a pretty intimate little gesture?”

Next to her was Lu Jin’s hand, hanging naturally by his side. He used to love holding her hand wherever they went.