Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Mr. Yan, are you willing to join us for lunch?” Yan Jiang had agreed to be the male lead in her MV, Du Xueyan wanted to deepen their relationship. Having lunch was the best opportunity for them to get to know each other better.
Yan Jiang looked up and glanced at Du Xueyan. “Okay.”
…
Du Xueyan treated Yan Jiang to a meal at a western restaurant. Although Du Xueyan was a singer, her figure management was not inferior to that of an actress. She ate very little. Yan Jiang, on the other hand, ate all the food on his plate.
Du Xueyan was slightly taken aback. Yan Jiang was an actor. If he were to gain weight, it would affect the shooting. As they were both celebrities, Du Xueyan asked him frankly, “Mr. Yan, aren’t you afraid of becoming fat?”
Yan Jiang smiled devilishly at Du Xueyan. “I have no shows to shoot, so it doesn’t matter if I get fat.”
Only then did Du Xueyan remember that although this person in front of her was very popular, he had indeed only acted in one film. All these years, he had relied on this face to stay in the industry.
Yan Jiang added, “Actually, I can’t get fat.” As a child, he was malnourished and had always been very skinny. Although he ate a lot now, he didn’t gain much weight.
Du Xueyan was green with envy, upon hearing his words.
After dinner, the two of them parted ways at the restaurant. Yan Jiang returned to his car and said to his assistant, “Let’s go to the Moon and Star Zither Association.” Arriving at the Zither Association, Yan Jiang chose an antique high-end violin for Song Ci and spent over 70,000 yuan on it.
After buying the violin, Yan Jiang called Song Ci. “I will come over for dinner tonight.”
Song Ci replied, “Okay.”
After ending the call with Yan Jiang, Song Ci called Han Zhan.
Han Zhan was having a video conference with a German partner when his cell phone vibrated. Han Zhan guessed that it was Song Ci and hurriedly told the partner to wait a moment in German.
The other party stopped and waited patiently.
Han Zhan hung up and replied to a message, before continuing the meeting. After the video conference ended, Han Zhan hurriedly called Song Ci back.
“Are you done with your meeting?” The phone rang and Song Ci answered it.
“Mmm.” Recalling how Song Ci kept calling him elder brother last night, Han Zhan instinctively opened the thermos and took a sip. The more he drank, the hotter his chest felt.
Song Ci said to Han Zhan over the phone, “Yan Jiang is coming over for dinner tonight at our house. Is it convenient for you to come home for dinner?” Yan Jiang was Song Ci’s best friend and Song Ci wanted to introduce Han Zhan to her friend.
The phrase “our house” pleased Han Zhan. He looked at his watch and said, “What food do you need? I am getting off work now and will bring them back along the way.” It was not that he was really free at work. It was just that considering Song Ci’s culinary skills, it was not suitable for entertaining friends, so Han Zhan had to go back to cook.
1
Song Ci smiled and said, “Alright, how about you bring a bottle of coconut water when you return? Yan Jiang likes to drink that. Bring a big pork trotter too.”
Han Zhan’s ears twitched and he asked Song Ci, “Pork trotter?”
Song Ci acknowledged and asked Han Zhan, “Don’t you like pork trotters with sauce?”
Han Zhan’s lips curled up slightly. “Mmm, I like it.” After hanging up, Han Zhan picked up his teacup and took another sip. He felt that the tea today was slightly sweet and soul-stirring.
[fuzzy]Han Zhan packed up his things, grabbed his bag, and left. He bumped into Li Li, who just came back from a business trip, in the lift corridor. Li Li glanced at the briefcase in Han Zhan’s hand. “Getting off work so early?” It was only 4pm, Han Zhan was brazenly skipping work.
Han Zhan patted Li Li’s arm and said, “Please understand. When you have a family in the future, you will understand me.”
2
Li Li grabbed Han Zhan’s arm and asked in a sarcastic tone, “So you’re not going to Elder Lin’s party tonight?” Elder Lin was a respected senior and also the vice-president of the Huaxia Chamber of Commerce.
Han Zhan rubbed his glabella helplessly. Holding back his heartache, he said, “I’ll reward you with a Porsche for this year’s bonus. How about that?”
Li Li immediately smiled radiantly. He let go of Han Zhan’s arm and waved goodbye with a smile. “Take care, Mr. Han. See you tomorrow.” His face changed so quickly that it was astonishing.
On the way home, Han Zhan came across a large vegetable market called Wang Jiangshan Market. It was a popular food market in Wangdong City, and one could buy seafood and expensive vegetables from all over the world from there.
Han Zhan bought a big pork trotter. Passing by the fruit shop, he smelled the familiar scent of durian and quickened his steps. Just as he was about to reach the main entrance of the market, Song Ci called him again.
“Brother Han, can you bring a durian back for me?”
Han Zhan stopped in his tracks.
“… Okay.”
Song Ci nagged at him again. “It has to be mature, which is the kind that is soft and fragrant.”
Han Zhan walked back to the fruit shop, endured the nausea, walked up to the durian stand, pinched the durians, and chose a big and smelly durian. Along the way, Han Zhan smelled that stench several times and nearly vomited.
…
Hearing the doorbell, Song Ci opened the door and welcomed Yan Jiang, who was carrying a violin and a bouquet of fresh flowers, into the house.
Song Ci found a pair of Han Zhan’s slippers that Han Zhan hadn’t opened for Yan Jiang. “It’s size 46 and slightly bigger than yours. Make do with it.” Han Zhan was tall and big. The contrast between Song Ci’s shoes and his was huge.
Yan Jiang didn’t mind and put on the slippers. “It’s alright. I wear size 44.”
Yan Jiang placed the violin case in Song Ci’s arms. “This is the highest quality violin in that piano shop. You can use it first. I will buy a better one for you if I come across one.”
“Thank you.” Song Ci placed the violin case in the living room, and went into the kitchen to pour a cup of freshly brewed coffee for Yan Jiang. Yan Jiang stood in the living room sizing up Han Zhan’s house. Song Ci handed the coffee to him. “I just brewed it.”
Yan Jiang took the coffee, and pointed at the French window at the end of the living room. He smiled at Song Ci. “This glass is quite big. It’s easy to do things.”
Song Ci didn’t think too much of it and asked, “What’s the matter…”
Yan Jiang said, “Lovey dovey every night…”
Song Ci didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. They were indeed good friends. During the first time Song Ci followed Han Zhan home, those images also filled her mind when she saw the French window. She stared at the glass window and was somewhat expectant. “I must try it someday.”
Yan Jiang raised his brows and smiled.
Song Ci opened the box and took out her violin. She first sized it up. “Very beautiful, I like it very much.” Song Ci tried to tune the violin. After she finished, she said rather ruefully, “The previous violin was destroyed in Bijiang City. That violin was given to me by my mentor.”
Yan Jiang naturally knew that Song Ci had been learning how to play the violin by Du Junfei’s side from a young age. He asked Song Ci, “Did you visit Teacher Du all these years?”
Song Ci shook her head. “I’m too embarrassed to visit him.” Touching her violin, Song Ci felt somewhat ashamed. She murmured, “After the shock, my mental state hasn’t been right. I tremble the moment I touch my violin and bow. I don’t dare to see him.”
Actually, that time when Song Ci and her family went to Bijiang City, having a leisure holiday was out of convenience. Their real motive was to accompany Song Ci to Jiangdu City, which was next to Bijiang City, to participate in the national violin competition.
