Su Mo opened the door and came in, only to see a man and a dog staring at him in unison.
"Why are you sitting on the ground?" He laughed at first, but then frowned when he saw that Jiang Jianhuan was barefoot.
"Not even wearing shoes?"
“It’s very hot now…” Jiang Jianhuan explained, but Su Mo disagreed and took a pair of slippers from the cabinet next to her and handed them to her.
"It can't be too hot either."
Jiang Jianhuan pouted, but still obediently put it on. Wangcai had already broken free from her grasp and was circling around Su Mo's legs.
It always liked Su Mo more than it liked her. Jiang Jianhuan was busy with work and only played with it when she had free time. It never took care of it like Su Mo did.
"How did the launch show go today?" he asked casually, Jiang Jianhuan looking somewhat listless.
"It went very smoothly, but it was tiring."
"Then you should go and rest for a while."
Su Mo said, and Jiang Jianhuan nodded before going upstairs. Watching her retreating figure, Su Mo sighed inwardly.
With Zhou You's marriage, everyone's attention began to focus on him and Jiang Jianhuan. At previous gatherings, Su Mo was asked when the two planned to start living together legally as soon as possible.
Su Mo just smiled and didn't answer.
How can you say that he didn't even dare to mention it, because her refusal was definitely expected?
He didn't dare push too hard.
Su Mo looked down at Wangcai, who was carefree and circling at his feet, with a gloomy expression. He felt like a pitiful man who could not get a title.
After the fashion show, Jiang Jianhuan was busy with new product launches for a while, and during this time, she got off work very late every day.
Su Mo used to pick her up, but she flew out of town yesterday because she had an important event that she couldn't cancel.
If it weren't for that, Jiang Jianhuan would have almost forgotten that he was a public figure.
Su Mo used to go to the studio often, but in the last six months she has been at home almost every day. She drives Su Mo to and from get off work, buys groceries and cooks for her. Fortunately, new songs are released every now and then, otherwise Jiang Jianhuan would feel guilty.
She thought Su Mo was really free, until she accidentally saw the messages Li Sa sent him on his phone a while ago.
The rows of exclamation marks above the screen conveyed an overwhelming sense of condemnation, almost piercing the screen itself. They were basically saying he completely lacked the self-awareness of a boss, refusing to participate in this event or accept that invitation, turning down countless deals worth hundreds of millions.
Li Sa's heart was bleeding.
Jiang Jianhuan's heart was bleeding when he saw this.
She worked herself to the bone, racking her brains and working overtime every day, but the money she earned wasn't even as valuable as the time Su Mo used to drive her to and from get off work.
At 10 p.m., Jiang Jianhuan came out of the iro building. There was a direct bus at the bus stop downstairs, and the last bus was at 10:30 p.m.
She swiped her card and went upstairs. Someone else seemed to follow her, a tall man whose face she couldn't see. He was wearing a baseball cap, his back slightly hunched, and he found a seat and sat down, seemingly gazing out the window in a daze.
There were a few other companies around, and people who usually took the bus there, but Jiang Jianhuan didn't pay any attention and took out her earphones to listen to music.
The bus stopped and started, swaying and bumping past several stops, before finally arriving at its destination.
Su Mo lives in a high-end villa area. Apart from a supermarket and a few restaurants, there are no other commercial facilities around. The environment is very quiet and serene, exuding a noble and aloof style.
This bus stop was only set up for residents of the villa area.
Jiang Jianhuan has lived here for so long, and she has never encountered anyone who got off the bus with her.
The back door opened, and as the announcement of arrival came, Jiang Jianhuan stepped out with her bag on her back. The door behind her slammed shut, and the car gradually moved forward, disappearing from sight around a bend.
Su Mo won't be back for another two days. Jiang Jianhuan ate dinner in the cafeteria. As soon as she got home and changed her shoes, Su Mo sent her a video.
She said today that she would probably have to work overtime until 10 o'clock.
"Are you home yet?" Su Mo's face appeared on the screen, high-definition and without makeup, so pleasing to the eye that you could screenshot it and use it as your screensaver.
"Just arrived." Jiang Jianhuan put down her shoes and was about to go upstairs when Su Mo called out to her.
"There's some fruit in the fridge that I bought yesterday. Eat it before you go to sleep."
Jiang Jianhuan has been living a very casual life these past few years. When Su Mo isn't around, she can go a month without eating fresh fruit and just make do with takeout bread for the rest of the day.
Later, Su Mo would regularly make purchases, changing the types of fruit every day, and Jiang Jianhuan was unknowingly influenced by her.
She opened the refrigerator, which contained unopened cherries and blueberries. Su Mo instructed her to wash them, and then the two video-chatted, with Jiang Jianhuan eating and chatting with him at the same time.
"When are you coming back..." The plate was empty, and Jiang Jianhuan asked again, resting her chin on her hands, completely forgetting that she had already asked this question in the beginning.
The dependence she unconsciously revealed softened Su Mo's heart, and she looked at the person opposite her, her voice becoming gentle.
"I'll be back tomorrow, but it'll probably be very late, so don't wait up for me."
"Mm." Jiang Jianhuan nodded, her eyes brimming with undisguised anticipation.
The next day, Jiang Jianhuan left work a little later, finishing all the design drafts before leaving, so she wouldn't have to work overtime for the next few days.
Su Mo's flight was at midnight. She thought she would go back and take a shower, and then she could wait for him to come home.
Jiang Jianhuan caught the last train just in time. It was late at night, and there were very few people working overtime nearby. There were only a couple of passengers in the carriage. Jiang Jianhuan sat down in the back row near the door and heard the front door open again. A man wearing a baseball cap and a mask ran up.
He inserted a coin, which clattered twice as it hit the ground. The man sat down in the window seat in front of him. Jiang Jianhuan vaguely recognized him from the black hat; he seemed to be the same person from yesterday.
My initial instinct was to feel suspicious and wary, but I quickly realized I was just being paranoid. I guess I was someone who had only recently started working here, so I hadn't run into them before.
Jiang Jianhuan comforted him.
Ever since her near-fatal experience of being followed abroad, she has become somewhat sensitive and unconsciously becomes wary when encountering tall, unfamiliar men.
Sometimes she's so nervous that if someone accidentally bumps into her for some unavoidable reason, she'll flinch, usually startling the other person.
She could only keep apologizing despite the strange looks she received.