Chapter 03.1: “I can get married too.”

Until Jiang Yao got into the taxi and disappeared into the hustle and bustle, Duan Zhuxian finally got into his own car, and the contemplation and caution hidden in his eyes relaxed slightly.

Sitting in the backseat, he opened the car door and lit a cigarette.

Just now, Jiang Yao had smoked fiercely in front of him, his soft and moist lips repeatedly wrapping around the cigarette, and when he exhaled the smoke with his head lowered, he let out a deliberate and impatient panting sound, one after another.

It had aroused a little craving in him.

Halfway through his cigarette, Duan Zhuxian took out his phone, opened the photo album, and the latest photo was of Jiang Yao drinking.

He slowly flipped through a few more pages, and all the protagonists were Jiang Yao.

Before rushing to the company to host an emergency meeting in the morning, he deliberately left someone waiting at the hotel to report Jiang Yao’s movements at any time.

These photos were taken just a few hours ago at the clubhouse.

In the dim and ambiguous atmosphere of the card area, Jiang Yao was sitting there alone in an ill-fitting black shirt.

Even the red highlights in his hair seemed dull and lifeless.

In his impression, Jiang Yao was like a proud red fox, unable to hide his flamboyance regardless of victory or defeat, and rarely showing such a hesitant and fragile expression.

The only two similar memories were, one was ten years ago outside the school gate, Jiang Yao asked him in a lost face why he confiscated his love letter, and then rushed towards him with red eyes and punched him.

And the other was last night.

Jiang Yao rushed into his room, with the smell of alcohol all over him, pounced on him, until he was restrained under him.

Later on, that beautiful face slowly turned, the unwillingness gradually turned into a daze, the resistance and counterattack also gradually became unconscious compliance, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not get enough, and his wet eyes were full of unspeakable desire…

As the last wisp of smoke rose, he came back to his sense.

Duan Zhuxian extinguished the cigarette that hadn’t burned out yet, closed the car door, and said to the driver, “Let’s go.”

The driver asked, “Mr. Duan, are we going back to the residence?”

Duan Zhuxian replied, “Go to the company.”

At that moment, the navigation inside the car announced the time: 22:00.

The driver started the car, although he did not feel strange about the destination, but he still had a trace of curiosity in his heart.

As the youngest senior executive of the Hua Yan Group, Duan Zhuxian had been leading his team to boldly expand the company’s territory since his appointment, in order to quickly win over the staff. Every minute and second was precisely allocated on his schedule, making him a total workaholic.

It was rare for him to suddenly drop his work and go to a place full of nightlife like today.

He had thought that Mr. Duan, after working non-stop for so long, had finally decided to take a break and return to the leisure of youth, to thoroughly enjoy himself. But unexpectedly, after it was all over, he still had to return to the company to work overtime.

*

Today is Sunday, as the weekend comes to an end, people retreat to their own territories, and the speed of taxis increases with each journey.

Jiang Yao pressed his face against the open car window, and the whistling night wind blew so hard that he couldn’t open his eyes.

The driver kindly reminded him, “Handsome guy, blew by cold wind while drunk will give you a headache the next day.”

“I’m not drunk.”

Jiang Yao subconsciously retorted, but he was choked by the cold wind and coughed as he pulled back his head.

The driver smiled, not intending to argue with the passenger, just slightly slowing down the speed. He was a little worried that the other person would vomit in his car.

About ten minutes ago, Jiang Yao hailed a taxi at the door of a nightclub, his footsteps were hurried and unstable, and his eye sockets, nose and cheeks were all red.

The driver could see it was the most obvious sign of drunkenness.

Otherwise, how could a grown man cry on the street?

His phone in his pocket vibrated.

Jiang Yao rubbed his frozen face, opened WeChat, and replied to the work message sent by his subordinate, then received a voice message from his childhood friend Chen Yiqi, asking him to help like some posts on Moments^[1]Moments is one of WeChat features.

He opened his Moments, and the latest post was a picture of his brother having dinner with their parents.

The three of them were hugging each other, taking up the whole frame, leaving no room for another person, creating a heartwarming scene.

In the comments, one of his brother’s friends left a message: [The power of genetics is too strong, you are simply the sum of your parents.]

The taxi entered the double ring road section, twisting and turning, making Jiang Yao a bit dizzy as he stared at his phone for a while.

It’s quite strange that he has never looked like his family since he was young, even to the point of being completely different.

When the four of them go out together, outsiders can usually tell at a glance that his brother is his parents’ child. However, when it comes to his identity, there is always a slight hesitation.

A few minutes later, Jiang Yao forgot about helping Chen Yiqi with the like, after liking his brother’s post, he simply closed his WeChat.

*

Maybe because he talked too much with that bastard, Duan Zhuxian, his chest suddenly felt a bit stuffy.

Back home, Jiang Yao rushed into his second-floor room, quickly changed clothes, threw the black shirt on the ground, stomped on it fiercely, then crumpled it up and stuffed it in the trash can.

Today, he was just drowning his sorrows in alcohol, and he was already starving, with his chest stuck to his back. Unfortunately, the housekeeper was on leave, so he had to sneak into the kitchen himself and find some fast food to fill his stomach.

On the way back, when he passed by the study room, Jiang Yao heard his parents talking through the slightly open door, and they mentioned his name.

He stopped and eavesdropped for a while, only to discover that his parents were actually discussing arranging a marriage for him.

Yuan Li was obviously not very supportive, and her voice came out from the crack in the door, resounding: “Yao Yao has his own life, he shouldn’t be burdened, and he has no obligation to sacrifice his future.”

Jiang Qingtian was silent for a long time, then sighed: “Yes, you’re right. If it really doesn’t work out, we’ll have to think of another way.”

Jiang Yao stood at the door, and furrowed his brows slightly.