Chapter 80

“Sis, I’m going home,” Xi Yao said to Xi Yu.

Xi Yu paused slightly, lifting her eyes to glance at Luo Yiran behind Xi Yao before looking away again. “Coming back tomorrow?”

Xi Yao nodded.

Xi Yu came over and took the tea set from Yu Nianyi’s hands without a word, then walked to stand in front of her. Xi Yao and Luo Yiran followed along on the side.

“You’re too impatient,” Xi Yu said casually, glancing at the car parked not far away.

“Impatient?” Xi Yao let out a laugh and looked at Xi Yu’s still-calm face. “Why are you talking just like Dad? You think I’m being too hasty too? When exactly do you think it’ll be okay?”

Yu Nianyi looked at the Xi sisters, then met Luo Yiran’s eyes in silent understanding. Neither of them said anything.

“It has to be said sooner or later. For me, sooner or later makes no difference,” Xi Yao said, glancing at her phone. She then took Luo Yiran’s hand and walked past the two of them straight toward the road. “I called a car. You two go on ahead.”

Watching Xi Yao and Luo Yiran walk away, Yu Nianyi looked back at Xi Yu and for a moment didn’t know what to say.

The two of them got into the car together. Xi Yu put the tea set in the back seat, then returned to the driver’s seat, started the engine, and drove off.

Usually, if there was nothing else going on, they would just head back to Xi Yu’s home together.

Yu Nianyi checked the time; it was 9:30 p.m. Outside, cars kept streaming past one after another, and there were still plenty of pedestrians on the road.

“Will Sister Xi Yu still have things to do later?” Yu Nianyi asked.

Xi Yu turned her head and looked at her. “No. Why?”

“I want to pick Baby up. That shop is just straight down this road.”

Xi Yu nodded. “Okay.”

There was a lot of traffic and a lot of people on the way, so they were stuck for quite a while before reaching their destination. Luckily, Yu Nianyi was on fairly good terms with the shop owner and had called ahead, so the owner stayed a little longer.

Baby was still just as she remembered, and seemed to have gotten a little fatter too. Yu Nianyi held her in her hands and stroked her, then showed her to Xi Yu before putting her back inside.

The way back followed the same road as before. Yu Nianyi looked around and was just about to speak when Xi Yu said, “Put it over here too. There’s food for it at home.”

Yu Nianyi lowered her head and glanced at the cage by her feet. Baby was huddled in the corner now, curled into a little ball; every so often, she’d lift her shiny black eyes to look up.

At this point, it really did feel as if she had moved into Xi Yu’s home for real. After the New Year, Yu Nianyi had only gone back to Xiangyang Community once; the rest of the time, she stayed at Xi Yu’s place, almost like they were living together.

Yu Nianyi said okay, then absentmindedly played with her hair for a moment before looking at Xi Yu, who was focused on driving beside her. She studied her for a bit, then asked, “Auntie and Uncle won’t come to the house?”

Xi Yu said, “No.”

Yu Nianyi gave an “oh,” unable to tell whether she felt happy or not. What Xi Yao had just said made her suddenly think of Xi Yu’s mother and father; the only time she had ever met them was through Xi Yu’s video call.

“We can record your face onto it when we get home later,” Xi Yu said.

Yu Nianyi instinctively looked at Xi Yu, and then Xi Yu added, “The company will be very busy for a while. I might not always be able to pick you up and drop you off.”

Yu Nianyi hurriedly waved her hands. “It’s fine. The tea set is already done anyway; I won’t be going out much these next few days.”

Xi Yu gave a soft “mm.” “Jiang Chen will send you a friend request. Remember to accept it. If anything comes up, you can also look for her.”

Yu Nianyi blinked, then nodded with real interest; after all, this meant she could hear a side of Xi Yu different from the one she usually saw.

After the two of them got home, Yu Nianyi immediately pulled out her tea set like she was offering up a treasured prize. Xi Yu examined it very carefully, picking up one piece to look at, then another.

Overall, Yu Nianyi’s tea set kept to common proportions, but with a few subtle adjustments; the whole set had been raised by two centimeters, giving it a different feel.

Each pattern on the teacups was also extremely elegant and dignified; the lines seemed naturally formed, and each piece had its own unique charm.

That night, Xi Yu used Yu Nianyi’s tea set to make tea, following the very rigorous method from the demonstration video.

Yu Nianyi sat quietly on the sofa and watched; she watched Xi Yu’s lowered, focused brows and eyes, then watched her fluid, crisp movements. Over and over, until a fresh cup of tea was placed in front of her.

Yu Nianyi carefully picked it up, gently sniffed it, then brought it to her lips and slowly tasted it. It had a very pleasant fragrance; the flavor was clean and smooth on the tongue, with a lingering sweetness that came back gradually.

After finishing, Xi Yu quietly watched Yu Nianyi drink tea; she didn’t do anything else, only occasionally taking a small sip before setting it down, her eyes fixed straight on Yu Nianyi.

It wasn’t until Yu Nianyi had almost finished drinking that they cleaned up, and the two of them went to take a bath together.

Mm... yes, occasionally the two of them did bathe together. At first, they each had their own bathroom, and after washing up they would happily hold each other and sleep. No one knew exactly when it started, but Xi Yu had taken over the bathing duties herself. Maybe it was because sometimes Yu Nianyi would be sleepy after they were done; maybe there were other reasons. In any case, Xi Yu seemed very happy to do this kind of thing.

As the number of times gradually increased, Yu Nianyi stopped being polite. She’d act outrageously perverted in the bathroom, touching here and there, but Xi Yu never got annoyed; she let Yu Nianyi do as she pleased, then after they were done, held her back to the bed... and moved.

Their bodies had just been washed and wiped dry, with not a bit of extra water left; and yet Xi Yu was very capable, teasing her with her hands. It didn’t take long before Yu Nianyi was wet again too.

...

-

There were less than two weeks left before school started. Yu Nianyi took this time to look online at the paintings that had appeared in Sun Mengyao’s gallery over the years; from somewhat well-known young artists to talented and individual art students, all of them had been exhibited there to some extent. A large-scale professional event like this year’s was the first of its kind.

After the New Year, Yu Nianyi had some direction in mind, but she was still wavering and couldn’t bring herself to put brush to paper.

She’d heard that Xi Yao had been in very close contact with Sister An Ning and had basically already decided what she was going to do, which made Yu Nianyi so anxious she could hardly sit still.

After thinking it over and over, she still wanted to go to Songshan Park once more.

Just then, Jiang Chen’s friend request popped up on her phone. Yu Nianyi tapped accept and first received a message from her.

[Jiang Chen: Nianyi, President Xi has been very busy with work lately. If you need anything on this side, you can look for me anytime.]

Very straightforward wording; it really did match the impression she’d given at first.

[Yu Nianyi: Sister Jiang Chen, are you off today?]

[Jiang Chen: Mm, I’m mainly responsible for your side of things.]

Yu Nianyi’s eyes lit up; she immediately told Jiang Chen about her idea. Jiang Chen said that was fine and that she would wait for her downstairs.

When Yu Nianyi went downstairs, she happened to see Xi Yu’s car parked below. She quickly got in. Jiang Chen gave a slight nod. “Is it Songshan Park?”

“Yes.” Yu Nianyi asked, “Have you been there, Sister Jiang Chen?”

“No. I’m not from Jiayang.”

Yu Nianyi nodded. The car drove normally out of the alley and into the flow of traffic.

“After the New Year, it seems like everything’s gotten a little busier,” Yu Nianyi said, glancing meaningfully at Jiang Chen in the rearview mirror.

Jiang Chen still looked straight ahead at the road. “Yes. Recently, President Xi has been dealing with the company’s supply chain issues on a large scale. If it goes smoothly, there should be results very soon.”

“That’s great,” Yu Nianyi said with a smile.

Jiang Chen lifted her eyes and looked at Yu Nianyi through the rearview mirror, then gave a hum. “Because it’s a rather important period, President Xi will also have more social obligations.”

“Xi Yu-jie already told me that too,” Yu Nianyi said.

The car drove steadily into a side road, then turned and pulled into a parking spot not far away.

This was still some distance from the entrance to Songshan Park, so the two of them walked the rest of the way.

“Nianyi came here for creative material?” Jiang Chen asked.

“Yes,” Yu Nianyi said, looking around. She subconsciously took a deep breath, then smiled. “Last time I came here with Xi Yu-jie, I realized this place is huge. We only walked around a very small part of it. This time I want to take a proper look. Sorry to trouble you for coming with me, Sister Jiang Chen.”

Jiang Chen shook her head. “No trouble. It’s my job.”

After walking for more than ten minutes, Yu Nianyi spotted from far away the little path she had taken with Xi Yu last time; however, the auntie from her memory wasn’t there.

This time, Yu Nianyi changed direction and took another path up the mountain. This route was easier to walk than the last time, and there were more people too.

The scenery was also very different from what she had seen before. There were many low hills here, one after another; in the connecting gaps between them, one could occasionally see the small trails leading up the mountain.

Yu Nianyi took out her phone and snapped photos here and there, changing angles from the same spot and taking many pictures in a row.

When the two of them headed back down the mountain, they took the same path Xi Yu and she had taken before. Yu Nianyi subconsciously lifted her phone and took a few shots; after only a few steps, a familiar figure appeared in the frame. It was the same auntie as last time, still bent over sweeping the ground.

She took a few pictures and quickly ran down.

Hearing the movement, the auntie also looked up, and at a glance saw Yu Nianyi in front of her.

“Oh, I remember you,” the auntie said with a smile. “You came here again this time. Why didn’t that girl from last time come with you?”

Yu Nianyi smiled. “She’s very busy.”

“Oh, being busy is good...”

Jiang Chen followed her down and, after Yu Nianyi finished chatting with the auntie, she also greeted her politely. Then the two of them continued down the mountain.

Originally, Yu Nianyi had wanted to treat Jiang Chen to a meal, but Jiang Chen said she still had things to do afterward; she would drive Yu Nianyi home first, then go back to the company herself.

Yu Nianyi couldn’t insist, so she had no choice but to get in the car.

On the way, Yu Nianyi picked out some of the pictures she had taken before, including the ones and angles from Songshan Park that she found especially interesting this time, and sent them to Sun Mengyao.

When she got home, Xi Yu called and said the takeout had been delivered to the front door. Yu Nianyi took the opportunity to tell her about going to the park again. Xi Yu guessed she was there for material and said that she could ask Sun Mengyao anytime; she had a lot of experience in this area.

Yu Nianyi said okay, and also told her to not work too hard. Xi Yu said okay as well, and hung up.

Not long after, Yu Nianyi received a message from Sun Mengyao.