I Want to Be Your Mrs. Jiang - Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Su Xiaomi could only watch helplessly as Jiang Yi buttoned up his shirt row by row, not even sparing the top collar button.
She really wanted to remind him that before he did them up, he looked like a relaxed young nobleman. Fully buttoned, he became a cold, aloof, and abstinent type. Besides, didn’t the latter look even more irresistible? After all, who wouldn’t want to see a reserved and elegant man break his own rules?
Of course, she only dared to entertain such thoughts in her head, not daring to utter a single word out loud.
After fastening his buttons, Jiang Yi turned and headed into the kitchen. Soon, he emerged carrying a bowl with gentle steam rising from it.
Su Xiaomi sat up, looking confused. “What’s this?”
“Brown sugar ginger tea. Small yellow ginger sliced into thin strips, simmered with brown sugar and water in precise proportions. Drink it and get a good night’s sleep—it’ll drive out the cold, remove dampness, and soothe a cold.”
Su Xiaomi took it obediently and took a big gulp. It was slightly scalding, but more importantly, the pungent spicy flavor of the ginger instantly filled her mouth, making her struggle to keep a composure.
However, once the sharp bite faded, the sweetness of the brown sugar gradually came through.
All in all, it tasted quite good.
Without waiting for Jiang Yi to urge her, she held the bowl in both hands and obediently drank it down, sip after sip. As soon as she finished and was about to pull back the blanket to bring the empty bowl to the kitchen herself, Jiang Yi reached out and pressed down on her shoulder.
The pressure wasn’t heavy, but through her thin T-shirt, the sensation was intensely clear. The moment his hand touched her, Su Xiaomi froze as if an acupoint had been struck, not daring to move an inch, her heart even skipping a beat.
Then, it began pounding furiously.
Fortunately, Jiang Yi quickly withdrew his hand and smoothly took the bowl from her. Even after he walked away, Su Xiaomi stared at her right shoulder where he had touched her, her mind racing with excitement.
Ahhh, Jiang Yi’s hand! Ahhh, Jiang Yi actually touched her on his own accord!
By the time Jiang Yi finished washing the bowl and came out of the kitchen, Su Xiaomi had already put on her shoes, thrown on her backpack, and was standing by the door waiting for him. Her expression was completely solemn, as if the wildly excited person from moments ago had never been her at all.
In reality, the distance from Jiang Yi’s place to Su Xiaomi’s dormitory was just a short walk right outside the residential complex. But since Jiang Yi offered to walk her back, Su Xiaomi naturally wouldn’t refuse.
As they stepped out together, they happened to run into Jiang Yi’s neighbor. Seeing Su Xiaomi, the neighbor asked Jiang Yi with a smile, “Is your girlfriend back from her business trip?”
Girlfriend…
Su Xiaomi turned to look at the smooth mirror interior of the elevator, pretending not to hear a statement that made her blush and her heart race just thinking about it. Yet her gaze couldn’t help but drift toward Jiang Yi anyway.
How would Jiang Yi respond?
Deny it outright?
Pretend he didn’t hear it, just like her?
Or simply smile and tacitly accept it?
Just as the thought crossed her mind, she heard Jiang Yi offer a faint “Mm.”
Having received an affirmative answer, the neighbor nodded contentedly without probing further. Meanwhile, Su Xiaomi was stunned in place by his low “Mm,” remaining dazed until the elevator doors opened.
In the end, it was only when Jiang Yi lightly guided her by the shoulder that she stepped out of the elevator behind him, her face flushed red.
In Songcheng during June, even the evenings were stiflingly hot.
For convenience on the high-speed train earlier, Su Xiaomi hadn’t worn a dress, opting instead for a simple white T-shirt and long pants. Walking under the streetlights now, she couldn’t tell if her face was burning from the heat or from sheer embarrassment.
In her mind, the simple “Mm” Jiang Yi had uttered in the elevator replayed over and over again.
What did Jiang Yi mean by that?
Was he answering the neighbor’s comment that she was back from her trip, or was he admitting that she was his girlfriend?
The issue was, they weren’t actually in a relationship!
Although he noticed Su Xiaomi was still trapped in a spiral of embarrassment, Jiang Yi didn’t offer any deliberate explanation. He simply walked beside her at a leisurely pace toward her dormitory.
The distance was so short that before Su Xiaomi could make sense of anything, the two were already standing at the entrance of her residential complex. Most of the people passing by were employees from Yihang Media. Afraid that standing at the gate with Jiang Yi might spark rumors, she suppressed the urge to ask her endless questions. Instead, she forced herself to swallow her words and said, “Thank you for walking me back, President Jiang. I’ll head up now.”
With that, she turned to run off.
Before she could take a single step, the strap of her backpack was snagged from behind. Su Xiaomi turned around in confusion, only to see Jiang Yi looking at her, a subtle smile playing in his peach-blossom eyes. He looked exceptionally attractive yet mischievous, like a fox that had succeeded in a prank. “Why are you running? We haven’t decided what you want for breakfast tomorrow.”
Breakfast?
Su Xiaomi felt she was really in no mood to discuss such a mundane topic right now, so she gathered her courage and said, “How about I just grab something quick outside for breakfast? Otherwise, I feel like I’m troubling you too much.”
Hearing this, Jiang Yi replied completely naturally, “You don’t need to be so formal with me.”
You don’t need to be so formal with me… no need to be formal… no need…
Su Xiaomi felt like she was truly on the verge of tears.
President Jiang, if you keep acting like this, I really won’t be able to stop myself from overthinking!
It was only when even the security guard at the complex couldn’t help but glance at them repeatedly that Jiang Yi released the strap of her backpack. He said casually, “Never mind, go on in first. Send me a message if there’s anything you feel like eating.”
Su Xiaomi hastily agreed and fled the scene. When she entered the dorm, Ruan Tian was on the balcony gathering laundry. Seeing her come in, she smiled and said, “You’re back?”
Su Xiaomi nodded, sliding her backpack off her shoulders. “Yeah, I’m going to take a shower first. My skin feels sticky and uncomfortable. Let’s talk after I get out.”
Because her mind was completely consumed by thoughts of Jiang Yi, Su Xiaomi took a bit longer in the shower than usual. When she stepped out, she found Ruan Tian sitting dazed in her chair, holding a small basket filled with various toiletries, yet somehow she hadn’t gone to take her shower yet.
Su Xiaomi pulled a hair towel off the bed to dry her hair, asking in confusion, “Aren’t you going to wash up?”
Ruan Tian looked back at her as if startled awake. Her gaze was unexpectedly searching, leaving Su Xiaomi momentarily taken aback.
Su Xiaomi asked, “…What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Ruan Tian forced a strained smile.
“Nothing, your phone rang just now.”
“Oh!”
Not thinking much of it, Su Xiaomi dried her hair with one hand while reaching over to pick up her phone from the desk. To her surprise, she saw a private message from Jiang Yi—and it was a voice message.
Although they had added each other on WeChat, they had never exchanged voice messages before. Facing Ruan Tian right now, Su Xiaomi felt too embarrassed to play the voice message directly to hear what Jiang Yi had said. Looking for her earphones didn’t seem quite right either, so after a moment’s hesitation, she put her phone back down and continued drying her hair as if nothing had happened.
Ruan Tian kept an eye on Su Xiaomi’s movements. Seeing that she had no intention of playing the audio, she picked up her basket and left the room. She was afraid that if she stayed any longer, she wouldn’t be able to hold back the questions burning inside her—like what her relationship with President Jiang really was, why she had his WeChat, and why he was sending her private messages—voice messages, no less—so late at night…
Su Xiaomi waited until the sound of Ruan Tian’s footsteps faded into the distance. She quietly locked the door, climbed onto her bed, and tapped on the voice message from Jiang Yi.
Jiang Yi sounded like he was walking through a supermarket, with slight background noise, but it didn’t prevent Su Xiaomi from hearing every word clearly.
“I was thinking that maybe we could try making scallion pancakes for breakfast tomorrow. Have you ever tried homemade ones? It’s actually not too complicated to make. We’d just need to get up a bit earlier to knead the dough and let it rest for half an hour. Then we roll it out into a sheet, sprinkle black pepper, five-spice powder, and chopped green onions, roll it up, flatten it again, and finish by sprinkling sesame seeds, brushing it with oil, and pan-frying it over low heat until both sides are golden brown. Oh, right, it seems we’re out of drinks at home. How about I buy some soybeans to soak overnight, and we can make fresh soymilk with the machine tomorrow?”
Jiang Yi actually asked for her opinion at the end. What could Su Xiaomi even say? She cleared her throat and replied as calmly as possible: “Sounds good!”
After sending the message, she thought about it and added another line: “If every meal is going to be this good from now on, am I paying too little for food expenses? You’d be getting the short end of the stick. How about I transfer a bit more to make up for it?”
Jiang Yi’s reply arrived after a brief pause: [Is that so? Then how do you plan to compensate me?]
She had asked about adding money, hadn’t she? Why did it suddenly turn into compensating him when it came out of his mouth?
Although there didn’t seem to be much difference on the surface, Su Xiaomi felt that Jiang Yi’s phrasing sounded oddly suspicious. Besides, if things followed a standard script, Su Xiaomi felt there was really only one logical response to his question!
For instance:
[Is that so? Then how do you plan to compensate me?]
[How about I give myself to you?]
But that was something the teenage Su Xiaomi would have done. Back then, Su Xiaomi had nothing to her name, but possessed a heart full of fearless courage.
Today’s Su Xiaomi had everything, yet lacked that very courage.
So, while strolling through the supermarket, Jiang Yi waited expectantly for a long while, only to see Su Xiaomi send him three red envelopes in quick succession.
Jiang Yi: [?]
Su Xiaomi: [Is there anything in this world that expresses sincerity better than money? No! Since it’s compensation, offering money is naturally the best way to show my sincerity.]
Jiang Yi: [I’ll send you ten red envelopes if you say something sweet to me.]
Su Xiaomi: [Like… Daddy?]
