Jiang Chun: [Top of the list for arguing.jpg]
Jiang Chun: [Pot lid on head.jpg]
Ji Mingshu: [...]
Ji Mingshu: [Alright, you can shut up now, you're the top student.]
The daily bickering of the Guque Goose trio continued all the way to the brand event.
Jiang Chun hadn't planned to attend, because she already knew her ex-fiancé and the scheming woman would be there today. She hadn't seen those two shameless people in a long time, and she wasn't sure if she could control her temper.
However, both Gu Kaiyang and Ji Mingshu said they would support her, and since all the socialites present were Ji Mingshu's fair-weather friends, she was sure she wouldn't be the one to suffer if things turned out badly.
With that thought in mind, she felt more at ease coming. After all, Yanzai would also be there today, and she hadn't seen his exquisite, handsome, and aloof face at an event in a long time; she really missed it.
The event featured twelve small fountains, a young couple playing a duet on the piano in front of a large white triangle, a spiral staircase with copper-framed glass for the dessert table, and celebrities posing for photos, signing autographs, and giving interviews in front of display boards. The atmosphere was vibrant with the fragrance of flowers and the glimpses of their elegant attire.
"Why are you such a coward? You weren't the one who cheated. I was the one who slapped you back then, it has nothing to do with you."
Ji Mingshu secretly encouraged Jiang Chun with a flat, breathy voice, while outwardly maintaining a charming smile and occasionally raising a glass to acquaintances from afar.
Jiang Chun: "I know, it's just a little awkward."
"He's not embarrassed, so why should you be? Besides, you're engaged to Tang Zhizhou now. Wouldn't it be better if everyone just enjoyed their own happiness?"
Ji Mingshu put down her wine glass, turned her back to everyone, and started to analyze the situation. After she finished, she gave Jiang Chun all sorts of precautions in case a chaotic scene occurred.
Just as she was speaking eloquently, someone behind her suddenly called out with interest, "Hey, Ji Mingshu?"
She paused for a moment and looked back.
Perhaps because of her limited memory, the person in front of her looked somewhat familiar, but she couldn't quite place who it was.
But it didn't matter, the newcomer quickly introduced himself in an attempt to awaken her dormant memories, "I am Zhou Zhen."
"..."
Ji Mingshu finally remembered. As she did so, a slightly awkward but polite smile appeared on her face. "Long time no see."
Jiang Chun gave her a questioning look.
She introduced him briefly: "Zhou Zhen, my senior from high school."
Zhou Zhen raised an eyebrow slightly, seemingly not very satisfied with her introduction.
But aside from the phrase "high school senior," Ji Mingshu really didn't know what other information was available to introduce. Did he have to add a qualifier before it: "the high school senior who almost became my first love"?
She was neither good at nor interested in reminiscing about the past. She didn't even introduce Jiang Chun to Zhou Zhen, but simply nodded politely and picked up her wine glass to continue drinking.
The scene became a bit awkward for a moment.
Six or seven years have passed since high school, and there aren't really any grudges she can't let go of. She might patiently chat about the past with any other old classmate with whom she has no connection, but Li Wenying is not in that category, nor is Zhou Zhen.
There's no other reason than that Zhou Zhen was the senior in high school she had a crush on, but just two days later he went to the cafeteria with Li Wenying and they were chatting and laughing happily.
Li Wenyin was clearly trying to antagonize Zhou Zhen by deliberately getting close to him. When her initial attraction to his looks faded, Li Wenyin quickly disappeared from his life. Later, in her second year of high school, she officially started a relationship with Cen Sen, who had already graduated.
At that time, Li Wenying was riding high, but Ji Mingshu couldn't muster any enthusiasm for anything.
It was around that time that Zhou Zhen, who had little interaction with Ji Mingshu before, overheard from her roommate that she had a crush on him. He then took the initiative to appear around her and frequently conveyed a message of pursuing her.
He was a handsome guy after all, so Ji Mingshu didn't immediately agree, but he didn't outright refuse either.
Later, during winter break, she went out with her friends twice and thought the guy was pretty good. She was thinking of dating him, but she didn't expect that this guy, who seemed slow to warm up and shy, turned out to be a player who not only had his own small pool of admirers but also managed the entire ocean.
WeChat wasn't popular back then, but according to his roommate, he could hold five conversations at the same time just by talking to people on WeChat, and he could take different girls to see a Harry Potter movie six times.
Ji Mingshu's eyes were opened.
She naturally rejected his confession.
Because she was almost deceived by this playboy, Ji Mingshu felt very embarrassed, and for many years afterward she never mentioned this first love, which thankfully never even started, to anyone.
When he encountered an old friend again and reminisced about the past, Ji Mingshu clearly didn't want to pay him any attention.
However, Zhou Zhen, this old friend, was not particularly tactful. Even though Ji Mingshu's attitude was so clear, he still stood there and insisted on chatting with her. He thought he had brought up their past ambiguous relationship at just the right time, and then changed the subject to talk about his development abroad after graduation. In his words, he seemed to think that he was doing well and was quite superior. He had a strange feeling of wanting to make Ji Mingshu regret her previous rejection.
Ji Mingshu listened politely for a while, and was about to interrupt.
Suddenly a woman walked over, took Zhou Zhen's arm as if asserting her ownership, and called out affectionately, "Ah Zhen." Then she looked Ji Mingshu up and down with a less-than-friendly gaze.
Her pronunciation of "Ah Zhen" wasn't quite standard; it was probably an ABC.
Ji Mingshu glanced at the fringed dress she was wearing, which was the same style as his but in a different color, and then lowered his eyes, swirling his red wine indifferently.
The ABC (American-born Chinese) also quickly noticed Ji Mingshu's skirt, and his expression turned sour.
She wanted to buy the dark green version of this dress, but it was out of stock everywhere, which made her unhappy for several days. In the end, she got the white one instead.
The gossipy little goose secretly observed everything without saying a word, but instead took out her phone and typed a message for Ji Mingshu: "Wearing the same clothes isn't scary, whoever looks worse is the one who feels awkward."
Ji Mingshu pursed her lips.
"Who are these two?" ABC looked at the two of them and asked Zhou Zhen.
Zhou Zhen wasn't embarrassed at all. He gave her a brief introduction, then introduced ABC to Ji Mingshu as his fiancée, and also mentioned her background intentionally or unintentionally.
Ji Mingshu smiled and said "Oh".
These two, whether they had just returned to China and were unaware of the situation in the domestic circles or something else, stood in front of Ji Mingshu and wouldn't leave.
One of them was trying to imply that she was doing well now and that it was her loss that she didn't date him back then. The other one seemed to have a "boyfriend-stealing syndrome" and was clinging to her playboy boyfriend to assert her status as the rightful girlfriend.
Ji Mingshu was getting a little impatient and gave Jiang Chun a look.
Jiang Chun, ever quick to chime in, suddenly echoed ABC's fiancée's words, exclaiming, "You're planning a honeymoon in Norway? How romantic! I've never even seen the Northern Lights before!"
abc smiled contentedly and exchanged a few polite words.
Jiang Chun then looked at Ji Mingshu and asked, "Hey, how's the paperwork for the island your husband bought for you going? You promised to take me to see the aurora borealis, can we just take that big yacht your husband bought there?"
Zhou Zhen and his fiancée both paused slightly.
Jiang Chun seemed oblivious, praising Cen Sen as if he were her husband, not Ji Mingshu's, with such genuine emotion and effusive praise.
"...By the way, when is your husband picking you up today?"
"Ai Mingshu is really lucky. Her husband comes to visit her whenever he has time and even cooks for her."
Ji Mingshu pinched her without making a sound, signaling her to stop. Wouldn't it be awkward if no one picked her up after the event?
But when she looked up, she saw the perfect man that Jiang Chun had described to her, a man she barely recognized, standing not far away, gazing intently at her.
Chapter 81
Jiang Chun is a strange person. Sometimes he's even more quick-witted than Xiao Budong, able to catch up with a single glance. Other times, he's like someone with 800 degrees of myopia, completely oblivious to people standing right in front of him.
Ji Mingshu watched as Cen Sen stopped behind Zhou Zhen and his ABC fiancée, exchanged a meaningful glance with her, and then looked at Jiang Chun, as if listening attentively to this enthusiastic fan's endless praise.
Zhou Zhen and his fiancée (ABC) were already feeling a bit embarrassed.
The two of them weren't stupid. Jiang Chun's effusive praise of Cen Sen was simply meant to tell them: other people's husbands are miles ahead of you, please don't be so self-important, thank you.
However, compared to ABC's fiancée's sour face, Zhou Zhen's emotional management skills were much stronger. Of course, this was also because he didn't really believe the exaggerated words Jiang Chun said.
He had been abroad all these years and was unaware that Ji Mingshu was already married, let alone that Ji Mingshu's husband was Cen Sen, the powerful heir of the Cen family. That's why he wanted to show off in front of Ji Mingshu.
He was indeed a little embarrassed after hearing this news from Jiang Chun.
But what Jiang Chun said was too exaggerated. Cen Ji was obviously a family marriage, so how good could Cen Sen be to Ji Mingshu?
He also knew Cen Sen unilaterally, after all, Cen Sen was a prominent figure in their middle school days. Moreover, his cousin and Cen Sen were classmates and had even shared a dormitory.
In his memory, Cen Sen was not some perfect husband who could do laundry and cook for his wife.
After praising her, Jiang Chun paused briefly.
Zhou Zhen smiled and interjected at the opportune moment, "I didn't expect that you, Ming Shu, would get married to Senior Cen."
Ji Mingshu had no time to pay attention to him; her mind was filled with thoughts like: Was it because they were outdoors that they couldn't feel Cen Sen's natural cooling effect? Jiang Chun was too engrossed to see him, fine, but weren't these two planning to turn around?
Zhou Zhen seemed to have no intention of turning back. He was preoccupied with saving face in front of his fiancée and even put on a show of bravado. He suddenly launched into a long talk about his cousin's friendship with Cen Sen, placing the Zhou and Cen families on roughly equal footing. He also briefly mentioned Li Wenying and concluded with a smile, "In that sense, Senior Cen and I are quite destined to be together."
What kind of fate brought us together?
What a coincidence that we've shared the same pile of shit!
Ji Mingshu rolled her eyes inwardly, utterly fed up with this man's knack for bringing up the most awkward topics. Her lips, which had been only politely curved, suddenly widened into a wider smile, her eyes lit up, and she sweetly called out in Zhou Zhen's direction, "Husband!"
Zhou Zhen and his fiancée were both stunned for a moment, and when they came to their senses, they turned around in unison, following her gaze.
Cen Sen didn't look at the two of them, but only raised his eyes, his gaze meeting Ji Mingshu's in mid-air.
From Ji Mingshu's bright eyes, he inexplicably sensed a threat that said, "If you don't cooperate with my performance, I'll make sure you're childless for all eternity."
After a moment, he nodded slightly and walked naturally to Ji Mingshu, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.
Ji Mingshu naturally took his arm, her voice a mix of coquettishness and reproach, "Why did you come so early? Are you done with work?"
Cen Sen hummed in response without changing his expression, "I didn't have anything to do this afternoon, so I thought I'd come pick you up early."
He turned to greet Jiang Chun, then looked at Zhou Zhen and asked gently, "And who is this?"
Before Ji Mingshu could introduce himself, Zhou Zhen introduced himself, "I am Zhou Zhen, hello senior. I am also from the affiliated high school, one year below you and one year above Mingshu."
He added, "I don't know if you remember Zhou Xian, senior. He was your roommate and also my cousin."
Cen Sen corrected, "We were only roommates for the three days of military training."
Zhou Zhen's expression stiffened slightly.
Cen Sen: "However, I just met with your cousin this morning and we discussed a collaboration."
Zhou Zhenyi relaxed and was about to speak.
Cen Sen continued, "But the deal fell through."
Zhou Zhen hesitated for a long time before finally managing to stammer, "That's... such a pity..."
“It’s no pity.” Cen Sen said casually.
Zhou Zhen: "..."
He clearly didn't know what expression to wear.