"No need, I'll do it."
"It's okay," she said casually.
"I've washed it countless times." Unlike before, I no longer have to lift a finger.
When Jiang Xin first met Su Mo, she had a lot of opinions about him.
In his eyes, his daughter was still the innocent and naive little princess he cherished. Who knew that after only half a year away from their watchful eyes, she would be kidnapped by a bad boy.
The old father felt a pang of sadness, especially seeing how much Jiang Jianhuan liked Su Mo.
Therefore, he was extremely harsh towards Su Mo.
The two had a conversation, the content of which Jiang Jianhuan did not know.
But later, at Su Mo's house, they ate their first meal cooked by themselves. Because Su Mo had cooked the meal, Jiang Jianhuan insisted on washing the dishes, but Su Mo refused without explanation.
It was a long time before Jiang Jianhuan found out, because Jiang Xin had once told him—
“At home, we wouldn’t even let Huanhuan wash a single dish. Her mother and I only have this one daughter. We’ve doted on her and protected her since she was little. She’s been spoiled and has never suffered any hardship.”
What was originally intended as a show of force was taken to heart by Su Mo. When Jiang Jianhuan later learned the truth, he was both amused and exasperated, and went to find him to explain. He simply smiled gently.
"It's just a small matter. Besides..." His voice trailed off, almost inaudible, and Jiang Jianhuan couldn't help but lean closer.
Someone gave her a big pat on the head, and Su Mo couldn't help but smile as she looked at her.
"I'm reluctant to part with it too..."
Just like now.
After listening, Su Mo still took the chopsticks from her hand without saying a word, and carried the two bowls to the kitchen.
"The past is the past, the present is the present."
"What?" Jiang Jianhuan asked, puzzled, without thinking. Su Mo paused in her action of putting the bowl into the sink, her voice very soft.
“I wasn’t here before.”
She reacted very slowly.
—It's okay, I've washed it countless times.
The past is the past, and the present is the present.
"I wasn't here before."
It's probably true that it's late at night that people tend to feel wronged. Jiang Jianhuan felt a pang of sadness, as if someone had crushed a tomato inside her, making her sour that tears were about to fall.
The living room was large, and the sofa in the middle looked a bit empty. Su Mo took the blankets and pillows down and spread them out on the sofa.
There's a very gentle quality to him when he does this.
Perhaps because he is usually so indifferent, the slightly incongruous atmosphere of home life when he does housework makes him inexplicably soft.
"I'm going upstairs to sleep." After watching him finish, Jiang Jianhuan said goodbye, and Su Mo nodded at her.
"Good night."
"Good night."
Jiang Jianhuan didn't think he would be able to fall asleep tonight.
Su Mo's room remained simple and clean, with few items inside. The curtains and carpet were a cool gray, as were the bedding sets.
Jiang Jianhuan likes warm colors.
Red bean paste pink, light blue, pale green, pure white...etc.
A similar fresh and youthful color scheme.
I lifted the covers and lay down on his bed, my body enveloped in light gray, the pillow still seeming to carry his scent.
Jiang Jianhuan closed her eyes, as if she had fallen into his arms.
In February, Wuhan was still cold. Even though winter had passed, spring was slow to arrive and the temperature was no less than that of winter.
It's alright during the day, but it's freezing in the early morning and evening. The air seems to be filled with a faint icy mist that seeps into the fabric and penetrates the skin, making you want to shiver involuntarily.
Around 1 or 2 a.m., the temperature is at its lowest. If you can see the weather forecast, you'll find that it has already dropped below zero.
Jiang Jianhuan was in a daze, feeling cold all over. He unconsciously wrapped the blanket tighter around himself and curled up like a shrimp. In his half-awake state, he seemed to hear Su Mo's voice.
"Jianhuan, Jianhuan, our heating is broken..."
"Hmm...?" Jiang Jianhuan couldn't even open her eyes, and just gave a random response.
Su Mo stood by the bed, clutching her blanket, her teeth chattering slightly from the cold.
Su Mo woke up cold on the sofa in the middle of the night. The living room temperature was ridiculously low. She got up and went to the wall to check and found that the radiator was ice cold. There were no extra blankets underneath, so Su Mo had no choice but to go upstairs. Luckily, Jiang Jianhuan hadn't locked the door before going to sleep.
However, once they got up there, they found that the temperature on the second floor was just as low. Jiang Jianhuan huddled under the covers, curled up in a ball.
He woke her up.
"It's too cold in the living room, can I sleep in bed for a while?"
Su Mo was so cold she could barely stand it. She regretted it as soon as she said it; she should have just secretly pulled back the covers and gotten in. What if she didn't agree...?
Jiang Jianhuan wasn't fully awake; she only heard Su Mo say she was cold and ask if she could sleep in the bed.
Without thinking, she moved aside, making room for him.