Childhood Sweethearts... Who Cares?

Shen Yi: "Don't go, I want to sit next to you."

"Sit here." Xiao Jingxing looked at Shen Yi provocatively. "If you sit too far away, I won't be able to serve you food like I used to."

As soon as the words were spoken, a "thud!" followed.

The chopsticks in Shen Yi's hand broke.

He broke it in half with one hand.

Shen Yi suppressed his anger and forced a smile: "The flu is bad lately, so let's all eat our own food and take care of our health."

Both men spoke with barbs, and their eyes were increasingly cold and menacing.

Yan Xu had had enough. She pulled her chair back, stood up decisively, and sat opposite him: "You guys keep arguing, I'll eat my food."

Shen Yi and Xiao Jingxing glared at each other, both finding the other annoying.

The meal was eaten quietly, except that Yan Xu's bowl was constantly piled high with food.

The two grown men seemed to be competing to see who could serve her more food, completely disregarding whether she could finish it all, only concerned with their own competitive spirit.

Yan Xu said coldly, "Enough! You can eat in peace. Jingxing, stop putting food on my plate, I can do it myself. And you, stop messing around!"

Yan Xu treated the two men in completely different ways.

She treated Xiao Jingxing with respect and reverence, while she treated Shen Yi as an equal, speaking to him in a more natural and casual tone.

The battle without gunpowder has already been decided at this moment.

Shen Yi raised his chin arrogantly: "Stop fooling around, let's eat. I'm starving."

Xiao Jingxing was bothered by Yan Xu's differential treatment, but he didn't show it on his face: "Xiao Xu, when are you going back to Kuncheng? If you don't want to stay at the Yan residence, you can stay at my other house."

Shen Yi slammed down his chopsticks and growled at him, "No way!"

Yan Xu glared at Shen Yi, who immediately looked away. "Brother Jingxing, I'll definitely contact you when I get back to Kunming."

She hasn't decided yet which industry to start her own business in, whether to return to her old profession or try a new field.

She must be able to protect herself before she can return to the Yan family.

While we're at it, let's take back the Yan residence that belongs to her.

The "Yan" in Yan Zhai refers to Yan Xu, and has nothing to do with Yan Shan.

"Okay," Xiao Jingxing said. "I'll wait for you."

Hearing this man speak made my heart ache with anger.

Does she need him to wait? Just say he'll wait for her.

funny.

"Hey." Shen Yi kicked Xiao Jingxing's stool, revealing his roguish side. "Let's go get to know each other."

Xiao Jingxing nodded: "Okay."

The two men walked outside the restaurant, while Yan Xu sat inside, separated by a glass partition and a row of flower beds.

Xiao Jingxing spoke first: "When did Young Master Shen ever lack money? I haven't heard anyone in the industry mention it."

Shen Yi glanced at him warily: "You know me?"

Yan Yan knew him before, and now Xiao Jingxing knows him too.

But he had no recollection of these people.

Xiao Jingxing put his hands in his pockets, as if recalling: "I wanted to cooperate with the Shen family before, but I was turned away. I happened to see you once at that time."

Shen Yi back then was completely different from who he is now.

At that time, Shen Yi was a complete spoiled brat in the Shen Group. He indulged in smoking and drinking, never looked at the people around him when he walked, and was arrogant and unruly.

And now... he's quite obedient.

To be precise, he listened to Yan Xu quite a bit.

Shen Yi has seen many people in the business world. There are countless people like Xiao Jingxing whose careers are neither particularly successful nor unsuccessful. Shen's Group is not a charity, so it's normal that they don't think much of him.

If it weren't for Yan Xu, Xiao Jingxing wouldn't even be qualified to see him.

Shen Yi kicked a pebble on the roadside: "Given that you've just returned to the country and your business resources are still unstable, you should be busy with your career. But you keep coming to see Yan Xu. Could it be... you also want her assets?"

The first-generation entrepreneurs whose businesses are stuck in a bottleneck are the least emotional people.

They can sell their feelings for personal gain, or risk everything to engage in shady dealings.

Xiao Jingxing's current actions contradict his career ambitions, unless what he is doing now is beneficial to his career.

Xiao Jingxing still wore his signature fake smile: "Take care of yourself first. Xiao Xu hates being lied to the most. If she finds out you lied to her, she will never forgive you for the rest of her life."

Ever since Yan Xu was deceived by her most trusted family member, she has a deep hatred for deception.

To her, whether it's well-intentioned or malicious, lying is betrayal.

Shen Yi understood what Xiao Jingxing was talking about, which is why he was so eager to make Yan Xuqian fall in love with him as soon as possible.

It's just so hard to make her like this.

Shen Yi calmly replied, "No need for you to worry."

After saying that, Shen Yi returned to the restaurant and sat down next to Yan Xu, saying coquettishly, "That man gave me a hard time."

Yan Xu followed up with his question, "How did they put on their show of force? Let me hear it."

"He said you hate me." Shen Yi lowered her head, looking somewhat sad. "Why do you hate me?"

Xiao Jingxing, who had just come in and sat back down, saw his expression and wished he could leave immediately.

He also encountered a manipulative, manipulative woman.

Yan Xu raised her eyes: "Brother Jingxing, is what he said true?"

No wonder green tea guys can be so charming; they're such good actors.

Xiao Jingxing bluntly asked, "Do you think it's more likely that he's talking nonsense, or that I'm saying this?"

What should have been a simple question took Yan Xu a while to ponder.

It seems that Yan Xu really cares about Shen Yi.

So much so that she began to trust every word he said.

Yan Xu realized what was happening and kicked Shen Yi: "Go back to the hardware store after you finish eating, don't stay here."

"Oh." Shen Yi paid the bill before leaving, and asked the proprietress to tell Xiao Jingxing that "this meal is on him."

After he left, Yan Xu spoke up for Shen Yi: "He's been very good to me, so Jingxing, you shouldn't pick on him in the future."

This was the first time Xiao Jingxing had heard Yan Xu defend a man, especially in front of him.

She used to always listen to him, and even if he said something wrong about others, she would unconditionally stand by his side.

Kunming has changed so much in just over two months since I left.

Xiao Jingxing asked a seemingly unrelated question: "Yan Xu, do you like him?"

How did we get onto the topic of liking each other?

Yan Xu denied it: "I don't like him. How could I possibly like him?"

It's just a cooperative marriage; they're not actually a couple getting married.

Seeing her determination, Xiao Jingxing abandoned this conjecture. Perhaps she considered Shen Yi a friend, which was why she took such good care of him.

Yan Xu: "How long do you plan to stay in Yunzhao County? If you want to stay overnight, I can arrange a room for you."

"Okay." Xiao Jingxing didn't stand on ceremony. "I'll stay for six or seven days. Anyway, I haven't had a proper rest since I got back to China, so I can take this opportunity to spend time with you."

Yan Xu smiled faintly: "Thank you, Brother Jingxing."

At least with Jingxing around, she feels much more at ease.

Just like when she was kicked out of her home as a child, she could always go to him for refuge; she would always have a place in Xiao Jingxing's life.

He will always be her protective older brother.

Inside a hardware store cubicle.

Shen Yi paced back and forth with his hands on his hips.

She muttered to herself, pointing at the floor, "What did you see in him? He's not as handsome as me, not as rich or powerful, and not as good at taking care of people."

"So what if we've known each other for a long time, childhood sweethearts... who cares?"

Shen Yi sulked alone.

Yan Xu and Xiao Jingxing leisurely returned to Zhenyun Pavilion.

Yan Xu said to Xiao Tong, "Get him a room for seven days."

"Huh?" Xiaotong's eyes widened in surprise. "...Where's my brother-in-law?"