Just Because I Liked Your Face

Jiang Wenzhe stood quietly behind her, one hand in his pocket, eyes slightly narrowed, jaw set. His gaze held a mix of scrutiny and curiosity.

Lin Sangyu froze as if she'd seen a ghost.

Amelia sensed the tension and gently nudged Lin Sangyu's arm, whispering, "Is this the friend you mentioned? He seems a bit intimidating."

"Yes, that's him," Lin Sangyu replied without looking at Amelia, her eyes pinned on Jiang Wenzhe.

Jiang Wenzhe lifted his chin slightly and said in a mild tone, "Is this your new friend?"

Lin Sangyu pressed her lips together and nodded stiffly. "Mm."

Jiang Wenzhe calmly raised his wrist to check the time. A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, but the muscles around his eyes were tense, and his eyes didn't crinkle. "It's almost mealtime. Why don't we all have dinner together? I've booked a restaurant."

Though his words were gentle, they carried an inexplicable pressure.

Amelia and Lin Sangyu exchanged glances, not daring to speak.

One felt guilty for having led an innocent child astray and been caught. The other was quietly ashamed of her earlier boastful words.

"What's the matter? Am I interrupting you?" Jiang Wenzhe smiled even more, casually undoing the top button of his shirt, leaning back in his chair with an air of lazy elegance, staring straight at Lin Sangyu.

Amelia's throat tightened; an invisible oppression seemed to hang over her. She was perceptive enough to know when to leave. She patted Lin Sangyu's shoulder reassuringly, then turned to Jiang Wenzhe with a composed smile. "Not at all; I'm the one interrupting. I have things to do, so I'll head off. You two enjoy your meal."

Jiang Wenzhe nodded politely. "Then I won't see you off."

Amelia downed the last of her coffee in a few quick sips and promptly made her escape.

Once she was gone, Jiang Wenzhe stepped closer to Lin Sangyu and said with a hint of regret, "It seems your friend has things to do. That leaves just the two of us for dinner."

He picked up Lin Sangyu's camera bag from beside her, weighed it, and found it a bit heavy. He turned to the two guards behind him and instructed, "From now on, whenever she isn't using the camera, you carry it for her."

"Yes, boss."

Jiang Wenzhe glanced at the two guards standing at attention and added, "You two can head back now. You're off early today."

Hearing this, the tension in the guards' shoulders relaxed. After a few pleasantries, they left the café with even strides.

Turning back to Lin Sangyu's nervous face, Jiang Wenzhe bent down, brought his face close to hers, and asked, "Why aren't you talking anymore?"

"I'm not," Lin Sangyu said, hesitating for two seconds. She stood up hastily, almost brushing against his face, her eyes darting around. "Let's go eat."

Before leaving, Jiang Wenzhe glanced at the two plates on the table, only crumbs left of the cake, and shook his head helplessly. Still, he remarked, "Next time, go easy on the sweets."

As a glutton caught red-handed, Lin Sangyu quickly played cute and replied offhandedly, "I know, I know. Next time I promise not to eat them."

He had heard that kind of promise countless times before. Every time she got caught, every time it was the same.

*

On the way to the restaurant, Lin Sangyu fidgeted with her fingers, tugged at Jiang Wenzhe's sleeve, and said with drooping eyes, "Jiang Wenzhe, I feel like you're a little angry."

"Is that so?" Jiang Wenzhe neither confirmed nor denied, only asked, "Why do you think I'm angry?"

Outside the car window, London's night scene was a blend of cold mist, warm lights, and flowing light. A few scattered stars were recklessly strewn across the deep blue sky, and the lights of classical and modern buildings spread out layer by layer, flowing past with the car's speed.

"Do you think I'm shallow and bad for wanting to marry three men?"

Lin Sangyu, looking at the scenery outside, realized belatedly that she wasn't being very proper. Now that she was human, she had still been following the social rules of her time as a sugar glider. That probably made her a heartless woman, didn't it?

Jiang Wenzhe scoffed. "No, I think you're quite ambitious."

Lin Sangyu muttered quietly, "That's clearly not true."

Jiang Wenzhe continued, "After you've dated 108 men, you can publish a book. I've even thought of a title: 'After Dating 108 Men, I've Figured Men Out.' What do you think?"

Lin Sangyu was mortified, her cheeks burning. "Can we skip this topic? I promise I'll never marry three men again."

Jiang Wenzhe's gaze rested quietly on her face, which was tense and flushed with guilt.

She was still just a child who didn't understand anything. So it was only natural that she didn't know how to handle relationships properly. It was understandable, and he could guide her properly later. But if it happened again... No, that couldn't be allowed. He had to nip it in the bud.

The artificial galaxy flowing at the speed of the traffic matched the rhythm of his chest unexpectedly. Jiang Wenzhe was silent for a long time, then called her name, deeply and heavily: "Lin Sangyu."

Lin Sangyu looked at him, puzzled. "What's wrong?"

"Be loyal in matters of the heart," Jiang Wenzhe said, his thick lashes trembling slightly. "You must not love one and then leave them."

Even though she was in a steady car, Lin Sangyu felt a seasick sensation. She said slowly, "I understand."

"If you do it again, I'll throw you away."

Separation anxiety, as expected, immediately jolted Lin Sangyu, pulling at her nerves with a dull ache. She nervously mimicked what she had learned as a child in the orphanage when she did something wrong and was punished: she stretched out her hands, palms up, raised above her head, and said, "I won't do it again. You can hit me."

The sound of tires rubbing against the ground blended with Jiang Wenzhe's faint sigh. He reached out with his right hand, pressed her two hands down, and held them carefully in his palm. He held her hand and interlocked their fingers.

Skin against skin was actually a very intimate gesture. Even just with palms touching, one could clearly feel the texture of the other's skin, its warmth. And if one were greedier, moving fingertips up a bit, one could even touch the hidden pulse.

Jiang Wenzhe asked her, "Lin Sangyu, do I look like the kind of person who would hit others?"

"No," Lin Sangyu shook her head.

"Then don't do that anymore. It's not good," Jiang Wenzhe said gravely, like an elder. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"I understand. I won't do that again," Lin Sangyu replied, her head hanging.

Why was she always looking down when she spoke? Jiang Wenzhe lifted her head with his other hand and said, "One more thing: in the future, don't easily accept strangers' advances when you're out, especially in a foreign country where you don't know the area. You could easily be deceived or put in danger."

"But Amelia is a good person," Lin Sangyu added, "She just looks like a good person."

"Do you judge people only by their appearance?" Jiang Wenzhe was getting a bit annoyed.

Lin Sangyu said innocently, "What else? Isn't there such a thing as 'face reading'?"

Jiang Wenzhe: "..."

Lin Sangyu said matter-of-factly, "And if I didn't care about looks, I wouldn't have stubbornly refused to leave the villa back then, and then I wouldn't have met you. Besides, aren't you a good person too?"

Jiang Wenzhe keenly seized on the key point and asked immediately, "So you fell for my face from the start?"

Lin Sangyu nodded like a pecking chick.

"Get out of the car."

Suddenly, Jiang Wenzhe pulled his hand away from Lin Sangyu, got out of the car by himself, and then turned to speak to her from outside.

"What's wrong now?" Why was Jiang Wenzhe angry again?

Jiang Wenzhe's face darkened, fingers gripping the car door tightly as he spoke crossly, "We've arrived. Let's eat."

Intimidated by his expression, Lin Sangyu shrank her neck and said pitifully, "Then don't be so mean."

"When was I mean to you?"

Lin Sangyu put her hands on her hips, took a deep breath, and then snapped angrily at Jiang Wenzhe, "You are mean! And very, very mean!" He always did this, treating her like a punching bag, didn't he?

With that, Lin Sangyu rushed forward, shoving Jiang Wenzhe out of the way as he stood by the car door, and stormed ahead, her footsteps clattering on the pavement. She only left behind an angry retort: "You're angry? I can be too."

That shove instantly doused Jiang Wenzhe's burning anger. As his irritation faded, watching that head grow farther away and about to enter the restaurant, he couldn't help but secretly smile. He shifted his stance, leaning against the car door, and stood there watching with interest, arms crossed.

Ten minutes later, that head, which had already been far away, reappeared in his field of vision. Lin Sangyu moved toward him at an extremely slow, unwilling pace—one meter per hour—her face full of resentment.

After what felt like a century, Lin Sangyu thought her face must have been completely lost in front of Jiang Wenzhe by now. She said, both angry and coy, "Jiang Wenzhe, it seems I can't get into the restaurant. The waiter said reservations are required."

Jiang Wenzhe teased, "So they kicked you out?"

Lin Sangyu, even at this moment, corrected Jiang Wenzhe's wording to salvage her precarious dignity: "Not kicked out; they invited me out."

"Oh, invited, not kicked," Jiang Wenzhe repeated. "I just thought you came back because you were no longer angry with me."

"Jiang Wenzhe, you're a big, big good person. Please don't hold a grudge against me," Lin Sangyu said, with her hands together in a prayer pose and a look of utmost sincerity.

"However," Jiang Wenzhe said with a hesitant, embarrassed expression, "I still think I should consider your feelings. I'm afraid you might still be angry with me."

Lin Sangyu completely lost it and threw a fit: "Jiang! Wen! Zhe! How could you!"

Satisfied with the effect, Jiang Wenzhe immediately changed his demeanor: "Dummy, let's go."

Before Lin Sangyu could react, Jiang Wenzhe took her hand and half-dragged her along as he took the first step.

Once she got used to it, Lin Sangyu started grinning again. Leaning against Jiang Wenzhe, she said, "Jiang Wenzhe, you're still the best, best, best person."

Jiang Wenzhe shot her a sidelong glance. "Even eating can't shut you up?"

Lin Sangyu immediately pressed her thumb and index finger together and made a zipping motion across her lips, signaling silence. It was only when she actually took the first bite of fries in the restaurant that she spoke up: "Jiang Wenzhe, my mouth is shut now."