President Song smiled elegantly at Xiao Xiao.
After accompanying Fang Yi to see Wan Chang's men off, Xiao Xiao had just returned to her office when she received a call from the man: "Xiao Xiao, how about we have dinner together tonight?"
Xiao Xiao chuckled sweetly and asked, "Was it Mr. Song from Wanchang who invited me, or did I know Ah Song who invited me?"
Xiao Xiao
The man thought for a moment and said seriously, "It's Ah Song."
Xiao Xiao still smiled, her voice slightly coquettish: "Doesn't Ah Song know? Xiao Xiao doesn't like ex-boyfriends who keep bothering her."
Ah Song paused for a moment, then asked softly, "Can't we just have dinner like friends? Xiao Xiao, I just want to be friends." She chuckled softly and asked, "Do I look like the kind of person who gets entangled in romantic relationships?"
"No way!" Xiao Xiao said, then thought for a moment and laughed, "Okay, let's have dinner together tonight. Don't talk to me in such a pitiful tone, as if I've abandoned you!"
Ah Song joked, half-jokingly: "Isn't that right?"
"Is that so?"
Ah Song laughed and said, "Okay, okay, I'm not kidding anymore. I'll pick you up tonight!"
Xiao Xiao said, "Okay!"
That evening, Ah Song drove to pick up Xiao Xiao. Xiao Xiao leaned back comfortably and sighed, "This car is so comfortable. No wonder it's expensive; it's much better than my old beat-up car."
Ah Song laughed, turning to look at Xiao Xiao: "I did offer you a car, but you refused to accept it. What's wrong now? Regretting it?"
Xiao Xiao scoffed, "With the little money I earned back then, could I afford to maintain that car? You might as well just give me RMB! Besides, as a recent graduate, driving such a flashy car to work would just be like labeling myself as someone who's being kept by someone else."
Ah Song gave Xiao Xiao a complicated look, and asked unwillingly, "Why don't you want me to support you? Weren't we very happy back then?"
Xiao Xiao chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Maybe I was too young back then? Saving face was everything, haha!"
Ah Song didn't laugh, but quietly drove the car, and suddenly asked, "And now?"
"Now?" Xiao Xiao glanced at him with a grin and said, "I can take good care of myself, why do I need someone else to support me? Hey, Ah Song, why have you become so nagging? I just complimented your car, why are you asking so many questions? Do men become talkative as they get older?"
Ah Song asked seriously, "I'm only 34 this year, I'm not that old, am I?"
Xiao Xiao chuckled: "Not old, not old. Men only blossom at forty, and you're just a newly sprouted seedling!"
Ah Song smiled and shook her head without saying anything.
After a moment, Xiao Xiao asked, "When did we arrive in Wanchang?"
“I own some shares in Wanchang, so I figured it’s better to keep it for myself than to let someone else do it, which is why I went,” Ah Song replied, then asked, “What are you going to eat?”
"Ramen, please!" Xiao Xiao answered without thinking.
"Ramen?" Ah Song asked curiously.
Xiao Xiao paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "Never mind, it's not convenient to go to eat ramen in your car. Let's just find somewhere else."
When Xiao Xiao first got together with Jiang Sicheng, she didn't know about his family background and always considered his financial ability. In addition, Jiang Sicheng was from the north and loved to eat noodles, so the two of them would often go to a small noodle shop on the street to eat ramen in the evening. Xiao Xiao was afraid of gaining weight, so she didn't eat much at night. She would usually stop after a few bites and watch Jiang Sicheng eat.
It turns out that this relationship had lasted too long, and some things had already become habits without them even realizing it.
Xiao Xiao stared silently out the window, her fingers tracing random lines on the glass, mirroring her mood. Suddenly, an inexplicable sadness welled up inside her. One can choose not to see or think about someone, but what about habits? How long does it take to break a habit that's already formed?
Ah Song noticed Xiao Xiao's unnatural expression, glanced at her thoughtfully, and said nothing, simply turning the car onto another street.
Dinner was very pleasant. Xiao Xiao and Ah Song are both smart and perceptive people. They always know what to say and what not to say, what to joke about and what not to mention.
If Xiao Xiao has become a demon in the workplace, then Ah Song can be said to have reached the realm of an immortal. In fact, in terms of compatibility, the two of them are a very well-matched couple, both in appearance and inner qualities. It's just a pity that immortals can be bewitched by demons, while demons are often only infatuated with humans.
After dinner, Ah Song drove Xiao Xiao home. When the car pulled up to her building, Xiao Xiao didn't get out. Ah Song glanced outside, paused for a moment, and said softly, "Xiao Xiao, this isn't like you."
"Hmm?" Xiao Xiao turned her head, smiled charmingly at Ah Song, and then turned back to continue looking at the people outside the car.
The people outside the car seemed to have seen Xiao Xiao inside as well, and stood not far away, quietly watching her.
His gaze, filled with too much, pierced through the night, through the thick glass, and landed on Xiao Xiao's face, burning with heat. He was wronged, always had been wronged, but he still lowered himself first, simply because of love, an inexplicable love, a love whose source he couldn't find, a heart-wrenching love, that made him willing to put aside his pride and wait downstairs for her.
From the naked gaze of that young man outside, Ah Song felt for the first time that she might really be getting old, because only young people would show such intense gazes, and only young people would not be afraid of being hurt and would reveal all their feelings in their eyes without any concealment!
Youth is truly an asset, an asset that can be squandered to the fullest.
Suddenly, he felt a pang of envy for the young man outside the car, unsure whether he envied his courage or the way Xiao Xiao looked at him.
Xiao Xiao came to her senses first, turned her head and smiled sweetly at Ah Song, her smile perfectly smooth, "Thank you for dinner, I enjoyed it, goodbye."
Ah Song smiled, nonchalantly, and asked, "Do you need my help?"
“Song, you’re not young anymore,” Xiao Xiao said, giving him a deliberately sideways glance. “That kind of game is childish, isn’t it?”
“But it’s very effective, isn’t it?” he said casually.
Xiao Xiao stopped and glanced at him, as if trying to see into his heart. Unfortunately, his eyes were too deep to see the bottom. Xiao Xiao's lips curved into a smile: "You know me. I hate complicated trigonometric functions. Whether it's starting a relationship or breaking up, it's a one-on-one thing between a man and a woman."
“That’s between mature men and women,” he said, glancing at Jiang Sicheng in the distance with a sneer. “Clearly, he’s not mature.”
Xiao Xiao also looked at Jiang Sicheng, but her words were still directed at Ah Song beside her. She sneered, "You're a businessman, so you always consider profit first when you do things. What are your demands? Don't tell me you're acting out of pure friendship. I'm not a little girl anymore, and I'm not easily fooled."
“Of course not!” Ah Song turned to look at Xiao Xiao and chuckled, “Besides, you were still a little girl and not easy to fool. I naturally considered the benefits, because his end is my beginning.”
Xiao Xiao laughed so hard her body trembled: "Ah Song, are you going to go back to your ex?"
Ah Song narrowed his eyes, a shrewd glint flashing behind his glasses: "Xiao Xiao, don't you even know? You've always been ahead of me!"
Xiao Xiao shook her head, opened the car door and got out. "It's a pity I'm not the kind of person who likes to look back. Hehe, I should have run faster and waited for me in front of me."
Walking up to Jiang Sicheng, Xiao Xiao looked up at him, her eyebrows furrowed with affection and her lips curved into a smile, but her gentle lips uttered words as sharp as knives. She said calmly, "Officer Jiang, we have already broken up. There is no point in you doing this."
Have you had enough of throwing a tantrum?
"Officer Jiang, I'm not throwing a tantrum or being stubborn. I just feel that you're not right for me. Why do we have to make things so tense?"
"Have you had enough of your temper?" He repeated the same question, his eyes red-rimmed, his voice hoarse, like grit grinding on a stone slab, causing a dull ache.
Xiao Xiao's smile finally faded, and she turned her head away.
"Xiao Xiao?" Ah Song chased after her from the car and put his arm around Xiao Xiao's waist. Xiao Xiao hesitated for a moment, but did not pull away, letting Ah Song pull her into his arms.
Jiang Sicheng gritted his teeth and stared intently at Xiao Xiao, his gaze burning with pain and resentment.
Ah Song gave a knowing smile, ignoring Jiang Sicheng, and pulled Xiao Xiao toward the door. "Xiao Xiao, shouldn't you invite me up for a cup of tea?"
Jiang Sicheng gripped Xiao Xiao's wrist so tightly it almost dug into her bones, forcing her to turn around and look at him.
He asked, "Is that the reason?"
Xiao Xiao endured the pain in her wrist and calmly looked at him.
Ah Song frowned, reached out to pull Jiang Sicheng's hand away, and said indifferently, "If you're a man, you should have some manners and not make things difficult for women!"
"Get out of here!" Jiang Sicheng roared, then looked directly into Xiao Xiao's eyes and asked, "Is that the reason?"
Xiao Xiao took a deep breath, steeled her heart, and nodded. "Yes, you already knew what kind of person I was. Have you forgotten your first assessment of me?"
His first impression of her was that she was frivolous. Yes, how could this girl be so frivolous? That was indeed his thought at the time. He knew it was addictive, but he still got hooked, fantasizing that he would be special to her.
In fact, regardless of gender, everyone will always think that they are the special one for the other person.
Jiang Sicheng stared at Xiao Xiao quietly for a long time, then suddenly smiled, his lips curving slightly, a smile both gentle and bitter. "I'm very funny, aren't I?" he asked softly.
Xiao Xiao forced a smile, but dared not speak. Jiang Sicheng finally loosened his grip and whispered, "Thank you for giving me such a good lesson."
Xiao Xiao
On the small balcony, the night breeze blows from time to time, cool but not biting, gently teasing the wispy strands of hair, lifting them up and letting them down, playful like a child.
Ah Song came out with a can of beer, smiling as she asked, "What? Still feeling the pinch?"
Xiao Xiao didn't respond. She leaned on the railing and continued to watch the lights in the night, wondering if there was a story behind each light, whether sad or happy.
Ah Song approached, gently leaning against the railing as she looked at Xiao Xiao.
Feeling the railing sway, Xiao Xiao turned her head to look at him, her gaze sweeping over the beer in his hand.
Ah Song quickly raised his beer, a smug glint in his eyes, and said, "You wouldn't make me tea, so I turned over the beer myself."
Seeing that Xiao Xiao didn't speak, he asked again, "What are you thinking about?"
Xiao Xiao smiled, her words carrying a double meaning, "Tea is the doctor of love, and wine is the matchmaker of lust; neither is suitable."
He asked, "Then what should I do? Should I just drink plain water?"
"No, it's you who should leave."
Ah Song paused for a moment, then smiled faintly and said, "Xiao Xiao, you can't play like this. You want to throw me away after you've used me?"
Xiao Xiao didn't laugh, but looked at Ah Song and said, "You wanted to play this game on your own, without my permission. You should thank me for giving you face and not exposing you on the spot."
Ah Song chuckled, nodded, and gave Xiao Xiao a thumbs up. "You're a true woman. I'm leaving."
Xiao Xiao smiled too, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Ah Song: "I won't see you off any further."
Ah Song opened the door and went downstairs. To her surprise, she found Jiang Sicheng still standing there. She suddenly realized what Xiao Xiao was looking at on the balcony. She smiled bitterly and shook her head.
As Ah Song walked past Jiang Sicheng, she glanced back at the stubborn young man. Jiang Sicheng had his hands in his pockets, head slightly bowed, lost in thought, as if completely oblivious to the person passing by. Ah Song had already walked past, but then turned back and stopped in front of Jiang Sicheng. Only then did Jiang Sicheng look up at her, his eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and, more than anything, surprise and delight.
Ah Song smiled wryly. What a silly boy, he can't hide his thoughts at all! It's obvious the surprise wasn't from seeing him, but from seeing him come out of Xiao Xiao's place! This child, how did he grow up so big? He wasn't kidnapped!
Ah Song pointed upstairs and then to her car, saying, "Two choices: either go up or come with me."
Jiang Sicheng stared at him blankly, not understanding.
Ah Song sighed, "Come with me. That's more manly. Xiao Xiao's heart is harder than stone. Even if you stand there until tomorrow, she won't be moved. You might as well find a place to have a drink."
After pulling Jiang Sicheng into the car, Ah Song suddenly wondered when he had become so kind-hearted. What did his suffering have to do with him? Could it be that these days, only innocent young men like Jiang Sicheng could move the hearts of vixens like Xiao Xiao, and even an old man like himself would have to soften his heart? He glanced at Jiang Sicheng; he was strong, with resolute features, quite a man. Thank goodness! Aside from a little sympathy for this silly boy, he felt nothing else. It seemed his sexual orientation was fine, and Ah Song couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
As soon as the car left the residential area, Ah Song received a call from Xiao Xiao.
"What do you mean?"
Ah Song glanced at Jiang Sicheng, pulled the car over to the side of the road, covered the microphone and said to him, "I'm getting out to take a call."
Jiang Sicheng nodded expressionlessly.
Ah Song opened the car door and got out, then took a few steps to the side before whispering to Xiao Xiao with a smile, "What do you think?"