Chapter 26.1

When Meng Zhengrong came out of the bathroom, Xu Yuan had already been bitten by mosquitoes twice, so she didn’t bother to give him a friendly look.

Neither of them had brought pajamas, and since they were not staying in a hotel, they didn’t dare wear pajamas. They both wore long-sleeved, long-pants casual clothes.

Back in the RV, Meng Zhengrong closed the door and said to Xu Yuan, “You sleep inside, I’ll sleep on the outside.”

When traveling, men are generally safer than women.

Xu Yuan had no objections; she and Meng Zhengrong were used to sleeping like this.

Though the bed in the RV wasn’t as comfortable as their bed at home, it was much better than staying at someone else’s house. Despite being exhausted from the day’s activities, neither Xu Yuan nor Meng Zhengrong could fall asleep right away. Since they were both awake, they started chatting.

“I’ve seen you a few times before, but you were very young then,” Meng Zhengrong said, leaning his head against the pillow with a low chuckle.

He had a good relationship with Xu Nuo, so naturally, he had seen Xu Yuan. At that time, he never imagined that the little girl would one day become his wife.

Xu Yuan wasn’t the real Xu Yuan, so she didn’t resonate with these past memories. However, out of politeness, she responded with a simple acknowledgment.

“I wonder when your brother will get married,” Meng Zhengrong remarked. “We always thought he’d be the first among us to marry but I didn’t expect that after I got married he’s still single.”

Xu Yuan was somewhat interested in Xu Nuo, given he was the original owner’s family.

She asked, “Why did you think he would be the first to marry?”

Seeing her interest, Meng Zhengrong set aside any thoughts of brotherly loyalty and replied mysteriously, “You don’t know?”

It made sense; at that time, Xu Yuan was still just a kid. Naturally, Xu Nuo wouldn’t share his romantic history with his sister, who was still in middle school.

Xu Yuan remained silent.

She didn’t know, having not received all of the original owner’s memories.

All she knew was that Xu Nuo wasn’t married and didn’t have a steady girlfriend. This wasn’t particularly surprising; although Xu Nuo was already thirty-one, he was handsome and wealthy—a classic eligible bachelor. If he wanted to get married, he could do so at any time.

Now, hearing Meng Zhengrong’s words, it seemed there was more to the story.

Meng Zhengrong didn’t think this matter was particularly private. It was easy to find out with just a little inquiry. Since he didn’t feel like sleeping right now, why not chat and get closer emotionally?

“You should still remember Ye Zhen, right?”

Xu Yuan didn’t know who Ye Zhen was at all, but since Meng Zhengrong could ask like this, it meant that this person had a relationship with the original owner. Thinking of this, she made a noncommittal sound.

“This matter is quite complicated. At that time, you were still young. The Ye family went bankrupt due to someone’s scheme. No company in City A dared to get involved. It’s not your family’s fault. Ye Zhen didn’t understand and broke up with your brother. Later, she was sent away by her mother. There was news of her a few years ago; she reportedly married a wealthy Chinese businessman overseas.”

It’s actually a very cliché story. Xu Nuo was still young at the time and hadn’t taken over the Xu family business, so he had no say in this matter. Even if Ye Zhen had married Xu Nuo back then, father Xu would still have turned a blind eye for the sake of Xu Corporation, let alone they were just lovers.

No one is to blame; it’s just a matter of fate.

However, could it be that Xu Nuo is playing around with the world because of this?

Meng Zhengrong didn’t say anything more. Xu Yuan didn’t know if he didn’t want to talk anymore or if the story ended there.

“Childhood sweethearts can be tricky too, like your brother and Ye Zhen. They grew up together but couldn’t even remain friends in the end.”

Xu Yuan glanced at him sideways. “And what about you?”

“Me?” Meng Zhengrong didn’t catch on immediately. “Oh, are you talking about whether I have a childhood sweetheart with anyone?”

“Yeah.”

Meng Zhengrong was somewhat pleased that Xu Yuan wasn’t completely indifferent to him. His voice became much lighter. “No, not at all. I didn’t like playing with girls when I was little. I found them annoying.”

“Hmm?”

Even Meng Zhengrong didn’t realize how strange their current interaction was. At first, she didn’t talk much, but now Xu Yuan responded even to his slightest remarks.

But changes are inherently small. By the time people notice, these changes have become habits.

“My mom had a friend who had a daughter about the same age as me. She used to like following me around to play. Once she accidentally broke a vase in my grandpa’s study. When the adults came over, she said I broke it.”

“You didn’t defend yourself?” Xu Yuan was somewhat surprised. Someone as meticulous as Meng Zhengrong wouldn’t just let others push the blame onto him.

Meng Zhengrong shook his head. “What’s there to defend? She was a girl, and I was mischievous back then. When she said that, everyone believed her. If I defended myself, they would think I was just making excuses.”

Perhaps it was because of this incident that he didn’t like playing with girls afterwards. Even when his parents scolded him, he only played with boys.

So, where’s the childhood sweetheart…

“Alright.”

“What about you?” Meng Zhengrong had laid so much groundwork just to ask this question.

To ask someone else about his wife’s romantic history… Forget it, it’s too embarrassing. But he couldn’t deny that he was now slightly interested in Xu Yuan’s past.

He wouldn’t be angry because she had a past; he just wanted to know who she had loved before.

But on second thought, if those people were better than him, would he be angry? If they weren’t as good as him, would he be even more angry?

Would this be considered minding?

This question really stumped Xu Yuan. She didn’t really know if the original owner had a childhood sweetheart, only that the original owner had a scumbag ex-boyfriend.

A perfunctory answer would be worse than no answer at all.

She couldn’t just make up something. The original owner’s past was real. If Meng Zhengrong really wanted to know, he could ask someone else.

Past experiences had made Xu Yuan develop a habit: before she was completely sure, she could just get by. In any case, she couldn’t give others ammunition for gossip.

Xu Yuan yawned. “I’m so sleepy. I’m going to bed first. I have to sit on the bus all day tomorrow.”

Although this was very rude, recalling the past was something she couldn’t handle.

Meng Zhengrong couldn’t believe his ears. Did she just fall asleep like that, without even bothering to make excuses? How dare she?

However, the fact was that Xu Yuan really didn’t say anything more.

Meng Zhengrong closed his eyes helplessly, thinking, Forget it, it’s just a small matter. Anyway, he had more exes than her. If he really wanted to count, he wouldn’t come out on top. It’s not worth arguing over such a small matter.

Although he wasn’t really sleepy, his body was tired. Before long, the two fell asleep.

The next morning, after brushing his teeth, Meng Zhengrong sat in the RV shaving. He still had to care about his appearance these days, especially since there would be photos taken. Later, he would choose the photos to take to the company for publicity.

He shaved and washed his face, feeling refreshed. He returned to the RV, where Xu Yuan was sitting on the sofa applying makeup.

Women are really troublesome…

Meng Zhengrong thought this as he looked into the mirror. When he saw the dark circles under his eyes, he suddenly felt irritated.

Although he was busy with work, he usually had enough rest. He didn’t usually have dark circles. How come he had them after just one night of poor sleep?

Would he appear like this in front of the camera?

He sat down next to Xu Yuan and saw her dabbing something under her eyelids. In no time, her dark circles disappeared.

Meng Zhengrong was captivated by the sight.

No matter how good-looking someone is without makeup, after all, they’re over twenty. They won’t look as radiant as they do with makeup.

Meng Zhengrong really wanted to ask Xu Yuan to help him cover his dark circles too, but after looking at the bottles and jars in front of her, he made several mental preparations and still couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Asking his wife to help him put on makeup…

Forget it, forget it. Just thinking about it feels embarrassing.

After Xu Yuan finished her makeup, she noticed Meng Zhengrong was still staring at the cosmetics she had placed aside.

“What are you looking at?”

Xu Yuan’s sudden question brought Meng Zhengrong back to reality. Naturally, he wouldn’t say something like ‘Can you help me cover my dark circles?’ He thought quickly and said, “I was just wondering if these things really work.”

“If not?”

What she didn’t say was, otherwise had she been praying and making a wish for the past half hour?