Zhu Xingyao didn't want to admit that he was a directionally challenged person, so he lowered his head and hummed, "It's not that I don't know the way, it's just that I don't walk much when I go out, and I didn't pay attention when I was in the car..."
Jiang Tu recalled her surprised look as if she had met a savior, and asked again, "How long have you been wandering here?"
Zhu Xingyao was silent for a second: "... maybe half an hour."
He didn't expose her, but Jiang Lu exclaimed in an exaggerated way: "Sister, are you a directionally challenged person?"
Zhu Xingyao: “…”
She said seriously: "Really not."
Seeing her stubborn look, Jiang Tu suddenly felt like laughing. When he turned around, there was a smile on the corner of his mouth. Jiang Lu scratched his head and said seriously, "Okay, because you are beautiful, I believe you."
Zhu Xingyao: “…”
She pointed at Jiang Lu, who was not even twelve years old, in surprise and looked at him: "How can this kid be so talkative? Is he really your brother? His personality is nothing like yours."
Jiang Lu said proudly: "Of course not. Sister Jiayu said that someone like my brother can't find a girlfriend."
Jiang Tu: “…”
He lowered his head and gave the kid a warning look.
Zhu Xingyao couldn't help but burst out laughing. Jiang Tu was silent for a few seconds, turned around and walked in front. The two brothers took her around half the street, turned to another intersection, and found the store.
This is an old restaurant, famous for its delicious food. It usually has a lot of customers. Fortunately, it is almost eight o'clock now, so there are not many people.
Jiang Lu ran to order a bowl for herself. Zhu Xingyao had not eaten much at noon and had walked around for so long, so she was almost starving. In addition to the duck blood vermicelli soup, she also ordered a pot sticker. Turning her head and seeing the freezer, she said, "Add two more bottles of soy milk." She lowered her head, unzipped her backpack, took out her wallet, and said to Jiang Lu, "Sister will treat you to soy milk."
Jiang Tu put a whole bill on the counter and suddenly turned to look at her. At the same time, Zhu Xingyao looked up and met his gaze. She was a little confused: "What's wrong?"
"It's okay." He paused, turned to the boss and said, "Take it from me."
"No, no, I'll do it myself." Zhu Xingyao hurriedly handed over her money. Jiang Tu was so poor, she couldn't take advantage of him.
The boss had already taken Jiang Tu's money, and said cheerfully, "How can you ask a girl to pay? Just take his money. Just sit there and wait for your food."
Zhu Xingyao: “…”
Jiang Tu had already taken out two bottles of soy milk from the freezer. They were very cold in his hands. He asked the boss, "Do you have any at room temperature?"
Jiang Lu immediately said, "I want ice."
Zhu Xingyao also said: "I want some iced too."
Two faces, one big and one small, were looking at him. Jiang Tu's eyes swept across her face, but he didn't say anything in the end. He took two bottles of soy milk and found a clean table. He leaned back in his chair and watched her talking to Jiang Lu.
The two men's voices were neither loud nor soft, and he could vaguely hear some words like "my brother is a bit fierce." He frowned and wanted to grab Jiang Lu and beat him up, saying he talked too much.
Zhu Xingyao felt that Jiang Lu was not as ignorant as she had imagined, and he was really sweet. The two of them sat opposite Jiang Tu with trays in their hands. She drank a mouthful of soup, and her stomach finally felt better. She looked at Jiang Tu who was sitting silently opposite her: "Do you want to eat something?"
"Need not."
"Okay." She didn't say much, picked up the soy milk next to her, and found that the cap had been screwed on. She subconsciously looked at Jiang Tu, who tilted his head slightly and looked out the window.
She took a sip and inexplicably recalled what Li Xixi had said in class before, "Drinking too much soy milk will cause developmental problems." She also recalled the look Jiang Tu had given her just now, and suddenly... she felt very subtle.
Jiangtu…
Did you mean to remind her of this
She looked down at her chest and felt that it was normally and perfectly developed. She thought she was overthinking it, it must be...
Next to him, a primary school student on Jianglu twisted the cap of the bottle by himself, gulped down half the bottle, and said, "Great! Thank you, goddess sister."
Zhu Xingyao was shocked. Was this kid a little too sweet
Even Jiang Tu was stunned for a moment and turned to look at him. Jiang Lu was a little confused by their stares and muttered, "What's wrong? Sister Jiayu said that the most beautiful one is the goddess. I have never seen any of my brother and Sister Jiayu's classmates as beautiful as you. Aren't you the most beautiful one?"
Zhu Xingyao was amused. She looked at Jiang Tu, who still had no expression on his face, and blurted out, "You have to ask your brother whether she is the most beautiful. My own opinion doesn't count."
Jiang Tu: “…”
He glanced over and stared straight at the girl's smile. She looked more beautiful when she smiled than when she was quiet. Her eyes were clearly black and white, and it seemed as if there was light flashing in them when she smiled.
Her parents are really good at naming, Zhu Xingyao, Zhu Xingyao… He murmured her name in his heart. This name suits her very well, from beginning to end.
Zhu Xingyao felt a little embarrassed by his gaze and just when she was about to save the situation, he said calmly, "Everyone says so, so it should be so."
This answer is quite satisfactory.
Zhu Xingyao couldn't help wanting to laugh, Jiang Lu snorted: "I told you, I've never seen anyone prettier than you."
She had an unexpectedly good appetite tonight. After finishing a bowl of duck blood vermicelli, she ate two pot stickers and drank more than half a bottle of soy milk. Jiang Lu, a primary school student, had an even more amazing appetite. The remaining pot stickers all went into his stomach.
As soon as Zhu Xingyao put down his chopsticks, his cell phone rang.
Old Liu felt worried because she had been gone for too long, so he called to ask about it.
Zhu Xingyao: "I'll be back soon, wait for me on the roadside."
As soon as I hung up the phone, I heard a ruffian voice—"Hey, isn't this Jiang Tu? Hey, Jiang Lu is here too."
She looked up and saw a group of people dressed like gangsters standing beside the table with contemptuous smiles. The man in the lead had a short buzz cut with a few shaved lines, looking a bit fierce. He rubbed Jiang Lu's head. Jiang Lu shrank at first, then immediately stood up unhappily. Relying on his thin body, he got out and glared back: "Don't touch me!"
"Tsk, you little brat are so stingy, you won't even let me touch you."
The man laughed lazily, and it sounded like he was joking with an acquaintance.
Zhu Xingyao was stunned, looking at Jiang Tu uncertainly, and found that the boy who was originally relaxed suddenly became tense, with a sense of disgust all over his body. He didn't look at her, but stood up and looked at the gangsters, and asked coldly: "What do you want to do?"
She understood and knew that they were not good people.
And thinking of his family's debt...
Jiang Tu should be very familiar with them. It might be because of them that he was forced to take leave for more than a month.
The man laughed again, and when he saw Zhu Xingyao, his smile suddenly stopped, and there was surprise in his eyes. He looked her up and down, and then slowly looked at Jiang Tu, "Jiang Tu, who is this girl? She is so pretty, I haven't seen such a beautiful girl in a long time."
Jiang Tu's face darkened and he spoke word by word: "It's none of your business."
Zhu Xingyao felt uncomfortable with his gaze and disliked the tone of his voice. She stood up and said coldly, "Whether I am beautiful or not is really none of your business."
She raised her chin slightly, and exuded an inviolable temperament from the inside out, which made Chen Yi feel itchy.
Jiang Tu turned his head and looked at her silently. He didn't want her to get involved in such a mess, and even regretted bringing her here.
Chen Yi raised his eyebrows: "You have a rather hot personality?"
Jiang Tu clenched his fists and turned back to look at him: "Chen Yi, she just came here to eat, don't go too far."
Chen Yi shrugged, looking at Zhu Xingyao's dress and temperament wantonly. She was holding the latest Nokia phone in her hand, which cost several thousand yuan. She looked like a rich lady...
"So you two are not familiar with each other?" He glanced at Jiang Tu, then smiled at Zhu Xingyao, "My little beauty, can you give me your phone number? I'll ask you out next time."
Jiang Tu: "Get lost."
Zhu Xingyao turned to look at him. The young man had a blank expression on his face, and the blue vein on his neck was tightly stretched. The other customers in the store looked over. She hated these people, but they were outnumbered and could not get any advantage.
Chen Yi's face turned cold. "Why are you still so arrogant? I know you are tough, but can you beat a group of us? Your father owes my boss a lot of money. I don't know why you are so tough with me. If I were you, I would have bowed my head and walked away."
Jiang Tu sneered: "That's you."
When the boss saw this, he stood up from the counter. He obviously knew Chen Yi. He said anxiously, "Chen Yi, can I call you brother? Can you please stop making noise in my shop? I still want to do business!" Most people in Hexi Alley knew Chen Yi. A thug who specialized in fighting was not a big deal. If he really started to make trouble, it would not be a big deal to fight in his shop. "You are here to eat, right? Just sit down. I'll give you a few bottles of beer."
Chen Yi looked at the boss and smiled again: "Okay, thank you in advance."
It looked like he really came to eat, so he planned to accept it.
Zhu Xingyao gently pulled the corner of Jiang Tu's clothes and whispered, "Let's go."
Jiang Tu's body stiffened slightly. He lowered his head to look at her thin white fingers, then lowered his eyes to look at her face. He slowly swallowed the bitterness stuck in his throat and whispered, "Well, let's go."
He turned around and Zhu Xingyao let go.
Jiang Tu glanced at the side and said, "Jiang Xiaolu, let's go."
Jiang Lu ran over quickly. Sometimes, he was still afraid and needed to rely on his brother.
Originally, the matter was over, but Chen Yi was impatient and hit him hard on the head. Jiang Lu lost his balance and took two steps back, bumping into Zhu Xingyao. Zhu Xingyao took a step back as well, and like a chain reaction, her back hit a customer who was holding freshly cooked duck blood vermicelli.
Most of the hot soup splashed out, almost all over Zhu Xingyao's back. She screamed in surprise. Jiang Tu turned around quickly, his face slightly changed: "Is it hot? Take off your coat quickly."
It wasn't really hot, but most of her back was wet, and even her hair was not spared.
She took off her coat, which was greasy and sticky...
The customer was a middle-aged man in his forties. He cursed angrily: "You bumped into me. It's unlucky to run into something like this while having a meal..." After cursing, he left.
Zhu Xingyao looked very unhappy, her hair was still dripping with soup. She simply scooped up the unwet part of her coat and rubbed it on her head to absorb the soup, as it was already ruined anyway.
Jiang Tu pursed his lips and took a tissue from the table, handed it to her, and said in a tense voice: "Use this to wipe it."
She uttered a depressed "hmm" and the coat in her hand was taken away by Jiang Tu.
Jiang Lu looked up at Chen Yi and complained to Jiang Tu: "He pressed my head and I accidentally bumped into the goddess..."
Jiang Tu pursed his lips and looked at Chen Yi fiercely.
He wants to hit someone.
Chen Yi looked at Zhu Xingyao. Jiang Lu called her "goddess sister" just now? It was appropriate. Her appearance and temperament were at the level of a goddess. He coughed and said, "I really didn't expect this result. Otherwise... I will compensate you with a coat?"
Zhu Xingyao looked up: "Okay, three thousand five hundred and sixty-eight yuan, I'm wearing it for the first time today."
Chen Yi: “…”
Damn, that's expensive!
He was silent for a few seconds, then laughed again: "Okay, give me your phone number and I'll take you to buy a new one tomorrow."
"You wish." Zhu Xingyao snatched the coat from Jiang Tu's hand, watched Chen Yi stuff the coat into the trash can, and smiled slightly, "I don't want it anymore, just consider it a gift to you."
She looked up at Jiang Tu, who had a gloomy face, grabbed his hand and dragged him out. Jiang Tu stiffened. Her hand was a little cold, and her small and soft hands hooked his calloused fingers, just like hooking his shaky sanity.
She pulled it the first time but it didn't move. She turned around to look at him and said softly, "Let's go. I should go home."
Are you going to stay and fight
Jiang Tu lowered his head, and his glasses slipped from his nose. He raised his hand to push them up, hiding the emotions surging in his eyes.
"Let's go."
He suddenly grabbed her hand, grabbed Jiang Lu who was standing there in a daze, and took him out.
Zhu Xingyao was dragged by him. He looked down at their clasped hands in a daze. Then he saw that he was holding Jiang Lu with his other hand. He suddenly felt a little complicated.
After walking out of the store, Jiang Tu let go of her hand and turned to look at her: "I'll take you to find the driver."
Zhu Xingyao's hands still had his dry warmth, and she whispered, "Hmm..."
Jiang Tu looked down at Jiang Lu: "You go back first."
Jiang Lu nodded gloomily and waved to Zhu Xingyao: "Goodbye, goddess sister."
The little ghost was very familiar with this area and ran away in a flash.
It was a chilly night in late autumn, and suddenly a cold wind blew. Zhu Xingyao had lost her coat and was only wearing a thin sweater. She shivered immediately. Jiang Tu took off his coat without a word and handed it to her: "Wear mine."
Zhu Xingyao glanced at the thin T-shirt on him, hesitated and didn't take it, and whispered: "The one you are wearing is very thin, I still have a sweater."
Next second.
The boy's large black coat, which still had his body temperature, was draped over her shoulders. He turned to look ahead and said indifferently, "I'm a man, I don't catch a cold that easily. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have been so unlucky to encounter this kind of thing tonight."
He strode forward.
Zhu Xingyao stood under the old street lamp, looking at his tall, thin and straight back, and could feel that he seemed... very uncomfortable. Yes, who could feel good if they were born in such a family and encountered such a thing
Her phone rang again.
Jiang Tu stopped and looked back at her.
This time it was Ding Yu who called, probably because he didn't see her when he got home.
Zhu Xingyao reached her hand through his sleeves. His clothes were too big, so she pulled the sleeves to get her hand out. The ill-fitting clothes made her look as slender and soft as a kitten.
She ran to Jiang Tu and answered the phone: "Mom, are you home?"
Ding Yu just returned home: "Why haven't you come back yet?"
Zhu Xingyao lowered her head, staring at her and Jiang Tu's shadows on the street, and explained softly: "There was a traffic jam before, and I was too hungry, so I got off to eat something. Now I'm going back soon."
Jiang Tu sent Zhu Xingyao to where the driver parked. Zhu Xingyao wanted to take off her coat and return it to him, but he said indifferently, "You wear it first and return it to me another day. I'm not cold."
Student Jiang, you are only wearing a T-shirt!
The temperature at night has dropped below 10°, isn’t it cold
Zhu Xingyao understood it as a teenager's stubbornness. He must have felt very embarrassed to be said such words by Chen Yi in front of so many people, especially in front of her. She hesitated for a moment and put down her hand.
The girl walked away wearing a large, worn coat.
When she was almost in front of the car, she suddenly turned her head and saw that he had turned around. His figure looked lonely and desolate on the yellowed old street. She suddenly felt an impulse in her heart and ran towards him again.
Jiang Tu was afraid that her driver would see it and affect her.
Turn around and walk away quickly.
He heard footsteps behind him, but he didn't turn around.
Until Zhu Xingyao stood in front of him, panting, blocking her way, he suddenly stopped and looked down at her.
Zhu Xingyao's hair was a little messy, with a few strands stuck to the corners of her mouth. She raised her hand to push them away, raised her fair and delicate face to look at him, her eyes sparkling: "Jiang Tu, it doesn't matter what's going on now, it will be better in the future."
Jiang Tu was stunned.
My heart trembled violently.
She smiled at him, and without even giving him time to react, she turned and ran away, the wide corners of her clothes blown up by the wind. He turned around and stared at her slender back, his heart aching and weak.
He knew that things would be fine in the future, but no one had ever told him that. Whether she did it intentionally or unintentionally, whether it was sympathy or charity, it was overwhelming.
Did she know that by doing this, she would make him want to make a mistake
Zhu Xingyao didn’t know.
She ran into the car and found that Lao Liu was looking at her with a very complicated expression as if he wanted to say something but was hesitant.
Zhu Xingyao guessed that he had seen it just now. She was still wearing Jiang Tu's coat, but she explained seriously: "Uncle Liu, I really just went to eat a bowl of duck blood vermicelli soup when I got off the car before. It was just that something unexpected happened. It's not what you think. It's a long story and a bit complicated..."
Uncle Liu: “Oh…”
Zhu Xingyao was afraid that he would report her, so she smiled obediently, "Uncle Liu, I know you may not understand, but please don't tell my parents, okay?"
Uncle Liu looked helpless: "Maybe I'm too old, I really don't understand..."
Zhu Xingyao: “…”