On the way to Orchid Gardens, Su Jianan was bubbling with excitement.
"Lu Boyan, you must feel very happy to have a mother like Auntie Tang."
That was one thing about Lu Boyan that she was most envious of.
From the moment they got married until now, Su Jianan had kept addressing Tang Yulan as 'auntie' like she used to. But in truth, Tang Yulan was waiting for Su Jianan to start using a different honorific.
Lu Boyan frowned. "Su Jianan, we're already married. My mother is your mother too," he reminded.
To Su Jianan, who had lost her mother at the age of fifteen, maternal love was something extremely precious? Lu Boyan's words... was he expressing his willingness to share his mother's love with her?
"Aww, Lu Boyan. I'm surprisingly touched by your words... Even if it's just for two years, I'll treat Auntie Tang like my own mother!" said Su Jianan sincerely. "Thank you!"
"..." Lu Boyan had only intended to get Su Jianan to start using a different honorific when addressing his mother. As for those complicated meanings behind his words, Su Jianan had read into them on her own. But just like that, she was satisfied?
He suddenly did not have the heart to correct her for reading too much into his words.
Tang Yulan had been anticipating their arrival from this morning until now, when she finally saw Su Jianan. She waved her hand cheerfully at Su Jianan. "Jianan, come on in."
Su Jianan walked towards Tang Yulan and stopped in front of the old lady. She pursed her lips. "Mother, I'm here to visit you," she said in a serious tone.
Tang Yulan had been waiting to hear the word 'Mother' from Su Jianan for far too long. Now hearing it all of a sudden, Tang Yulan had begun to doubt her own ears. Tang Yulan's eyes grew wide as she stared at Su Jianan. In that moment, it was as if she felt an overwhelming urge to turn back time by a few seconds just so she could hear it again.
Su Jianan seemed to be at a loss under Tang Yulan's gaze. "Mother, what's wrong?"
This time, Tang Yulan could confirm that she had heard it. In a split second, she pulled Su Jianan into her arms forcefully. "Good girl."
Su Jianan returned the embrace gently, smiling as she did so.
A mother's embrace. To Su Jianan, it was a long time coming. In this world, only Tang Yulan could make Su Jianan relive the feeling of being embraced by a mother.
After a long while, Tang Yulan's emotions calmed down and she remembered her son. "Where's Boyan? Didn't he come with you?"
"He's behind."
Lu Boyan walked in just as those words left Su Jianan's mouth. Overjoyed, Tang Yulan said, "Today I'll be preparing lunch for you two! And Jianan, I've picked up all my culinary skills from your mom too."
Su Jianan nodded in anticipation. "Okay!"
"Did Boyan tell you that this place is actually our old home?" Tang Yulan's gaze went around the house in a circle. "Boyan had lived here since he was born until that incident happened. We were forced to leave the country..."
In everyone's hearts, there would always be unspoken scars. For Tang Yulan, those scars were caused by the incident that had happened fourteen years ago. Su Jianan had no intentions of digging up the unhappy memories from Tang Yulan's past. Smiling, Su Jianan asked, "Really? Then which room did he stay in when he was young?"
Tang Yulan placed Su Jianan's hand into Lu Boyan's. "Boyan, why don't you show Jianan your old room? I'll go prepare lunch."
Su Jianan felt a little uncomfortable and was about to withdraw her hand. But it was as if Lu Boyan had seen through her intent and had been one step ahead when he squeezed her hand tight. "It's on the second floor. Follow me."
His hand was unlike those of average men, which were dry and rough. When his hand wrapped around her small hand like that, it brought her a strange sense of security.
But Su Jianan also knew that Lu Boyan would not be holding her hand forever.
The moment they were upstairs, Su Jianan freed her hand from Lu Boyan's grasp, acting like it was the most natural thing to do. Then, she began to wander around Lu Boyan's bedroom, taking in everything. Finally, she came to a conclusion. "Lu Boyan, so your dullness had begun since you were young."
Such a spacious room, yet it contained nothing more than a massive bookshelf and some basic furnishings. The bookshelf was fully stacked with books, leaving no room for any other items. Not even the comic books or magazines that every teenage boy would chase after could be found on the shelf let alone action figures or other game-related knick-knacks.
Lu Boyan's lips curled in disdain. "As if your childhood bedroom is normal than mine."
Su Jianan had never been interested in dolls and stuffed toys. Her only hobby was collecting detective novels and watching anime. Her mother once complained to Tang Yulan that her bedroom was completely different from the bedroom of a typical young girl. At the time, Lu Boyan was also present. Until now, she could still remember the strange look Lu Boyan had given her back then.
She feigned an air of confidence by raising her chin and pushing her chest out. "That's only because my childhood interests and hobbies are a little... special."
Lu Boyan raised his brows. "So when you're different, it's special. But when I'm different, it's dull?"
"Ahem..." Su Jianan touched the tip of her nose guiltily. She tried to change the subject by pointing out a - the one and only - box which sat on the topmost level of the bookshelf. "Are all your childhood toys kept in there?"
As she was speaking, she reached out to take the box.
Lu Boyan's eyes narrowed dangerously. "The things in that box can never be seen by Su Jianan!" he thought.
His long legs allowed him to reach Su Jianan's side in just two or three strides. He grabbed her hands tight and forcefully pulled her towards him.
"Ah..."
All of a sudden, Su Jianan lost her balance and bumped face-first into Lu Boyan's chest.
Literally face-first - both her lips were now tightly pressed against Lu Boyan's chest.
Lu Boyan had worn a thin shirt that day, so he could practically feel the softness and tenderness of her lips on his chest. It was as if a hand had reached in and gently caressed his heart. A peculiar feeling began spreading out from his chest.
He really wanted to... keep pressing her into him just like this.
Su Jianan's tiny face had long since burst into red hot flames. She struggled to her feet and glared at the culprit. "Lu Boyan!"
"Su Jianan, it's very rude to touch other people's stuff without permission."
In just one line, he had managed to stop Su Jianan.
Disgruntled, Su Jianan pursed her tiny lips. "Fine. I won't look." After that, she snorted and slipped out of the room.
Seeing her form vanishing through the door, Lu Boyan took down the box and opened it. Inside was a photo which had been kept as good as new even after all these years...
Su Jianan went into the kitchen and saw that Tang Yulan was preparing vegetables. Su Jianan rolled up her sleeves. "Mother, I'll help you," she said tenderly.
Without waiting for a response from Tang Yulan, Su Jianan grabbed a potato and began slicing.
Tang Yulan smiled. All of a sudden, she remembered something. "I'll go upstairs to take something."
When she passed Lu Boyan's room, Tang Yulan saw him staring at a photo.
"Probably a photo of his father," Tang Yulan thought.
Tang Yulan sighed and entered the room. "Boyan."
Lu Boyan quickly slid the photo back into the box upon hearing his mother's voice. "Mom, what's wrong?"
Tang Yulan sat down close to her son. "Jianan's the one who asked you to come home today, isn't she? I told you. Jianan is much more sensible than you think. At least she has the heart to come visit an old lady like me." Tang Yulan smiled happily. "Promise me that you'll protect her for the rest of your life."
"Don't worry, mom. She'll never come to harm as long as there's me."
His eagle-like eyes contained nothing but complete resolve and conviction.
Tang Yulan nodded and patted her son's hand. "I need to get something from my room."
Lu Boyan left Tang Yulan at the door of her room before heading back to his own room. He took another look at that ten-year-old photo before closing the box. After putting the box back in place, he went downstairs.
Su Jianan was still in the kitchen slicing vegetables. After Tang Yulan found the thing she had been looking for, she entered the kitchen while pulling Lu Boyan with her. In the kitchen, they were both a little taken aback by what they saw.
Su Jianan had already cut up the meat and the vegetables and had placed them neatly on the plate. The plate had been arranged beautifully as if it were a platter. Even the potatoes had been so evenly cut that each slice was practically equal in thickness. Such knife skills were comparable to those of professional chefs.
"Jianan...you haven't taken a course on knife skills, have you?" Tang Yulan asked in a daze.
"Mom," Lu Boyan reminded his mother, "she's a medical examiner." If Su Jianan could cut up a human body neatly, what was a potato to her?
Tang Yulan felt as if she had just woken up from a dream. "Jianan, I heard that the lady from Chen family had slighted your occupation during the party the other night? Ha. Someday, I'll invite her over and have her witness your knife skills. I guarantee, the next time she sees you, she'll be trembling before you and calling you sister."
Feeling awkward, Su Jianan did not know how to respond, so she kept quiet. "Looks like my mother-in-law isn't one to be trifled with," she thought.
"Boyan, you don't have any plans tonight, I hope?" Tang Yulan asked.
"No," Lu Boyan answered frankly.
Satisfied, Tang Yulan smiled before moving to stand beside Su Jianan. "Jianan, why don't you two stay for the night and head back tomorrow? How does that sound?"
Lu Boyan narrowed his eyes. When Tang Yulan was not paying attention, he hurriedly tugged at Su Jianan so that she would start making up an excuse to turn down the offer.
Su Jianan was preoccupied with the happiness she was feeling at that moment, so she did not think there was anything wrong with the suggestion. She gave Lu Boyan a strange look. Then, she smiled and nodded. "Okay. I'm free for the next two days anyway." She just wanted to spend time with Tang Yulan.
The situation was beyond saving now. Even so, Lu Boyan remained calm and composed. After all, it was not going to be him that would end up agitated and nervous when the time came.
Tang Yulan put on her apron happily and began to cook.
Pork ribs soup, baked potato with beef, steamed bass, scrambled eggs with chives, and scalded Choy Sum. Soon, all four dishes were served. Tang Yulan allowed Su Jianan to have the first taste. "Try it. See if they taste the same as the ones your mother made. These are the dishes that your mom was best at back then."
Back then, Su Jianan's favorite was her mom's baked potato with beef. She took a bite of the same dish made by Tang Yulan and found that it tasted exactly the same as her mom's.
Su Jianan's eyes grew slightly warm, though her lips curved into a smile. "They taste alike."
Tang Yulan smiled. "Then let's eat."
The moment Su Jianan sat down, she politely filled a bowl of soup and served it to Tang Yulan first. After that, she automatically reached for Lu Boyan's bowl and began filling it with soup too. "Have some soup."
Lu Boyan looked at his young wife in surprise. Then, he caught a glimpse of his mother who was sitting on the opposite side of him. There was so much joy in his mother's smile, so he had no other choice but to give a tiny smile of his own. "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Su Jianan was in a great mood. Every dish on the table was so delicious that it could turn anyone into a glutton. This was probably the tastiest meal she ever had since her mother passed away.
After lunch, fruits were served by the maids. Tang Yulan regarded Su Jianan and Lu Boyan seriously. "Jianan, Boyan, there's something I'd like to discuss with both of you."
"When are you planning to have kids? I've thought of quite a few names for my grandchildren."
Su Jianan lost control and spit out the water she had been drinking.
As yet, Su Jianan and Lu Boyan had not even consummated their marriage. In fact, they had already agreed to a divorce, which would happen in two years' time. How on earth were they supposed to have kids? Also, this topic was... it was practically a test for how thick-faced she was! Su Jianan's face turned as red as a poppy and she suddenly grew fidgety. She did not have the courage to look at Tang Yulan and Lu Boyan. Lu Boyan admired Su Jianan's facial expressions with interest. "Wasn't she the one who'd demanded me to take my clothes off the night before we got married? Why is she blushing now?" he thought. But he could not deny that she looked more like a shy teenager when she was blushing. There was a flicker in her eyes, one that made her look like a deer caught in the headlights. It made him feel that... that he would be facing a total injustice if he did not at least try to tease her. He pulled Su Jianan into his arms affecti
Su Jianan was staring Lu Boyan and letting her imagination run wild, when Lu Boyan suddenly opened his eyes. Amid the night-time ambience, that danger and coldness in his long, narrow eyes were far more intense than they usually seemed. Startled, Su Jianan took a deep breath. Lu Boyan sneered. "If I'd intended to do something to you, do you think you'd still be standing over there?" "Then... then where would I be?" Su Jianan asked blankly. "The bed, of course." Lu Boyan's lips curved upwards, forming an evil grin. Another sound went off in her head. Something had exploded in her skull, causing Su Jianan's mind to go completely blank. Not because of what Lu Boyan had said, but because... because he knew exactly what she was afraid of! That was just pure evil... "Pass me the throw pillows on the couch," Lu Boyan said all of a sudden. "Oh." Obediently, Su Jianan did
The doxxing threat was no longer a cause for concern, so the following day, Su Jianan went to work as usual. What Su Jianan did not know was that Su Yuanyuan's hatred for her had reached its breaking point. When Su Jianan and Lu Boyan visited during their post-nuptial homecoming, Su Yuanyuan had intended to use her leg injury as an excuse to get closer to Lu Boyan. But what ended up happening was beyond her expectations. Instead of catching Lu Boyan's attention, she got sent to the hospital by Su Jianan. It was like trying to steal a chicken using rice as bait, but ended up having the bait stolen instead. Ever since that day, Su Yuanyuan had been plotting her revenge. Now, her opportunity had finally come. Countless of Han Ruoxi's retarded fans on the internet were looking for Su Jianan. So if she leaked Su Jianan's personal details onto the internet, it would eliminate the need for her to execute her revenge with her own two hands. There would be hordes
It was not until a while later that Su Jianan dropped off the phone. She drifted into the kitchen confusedly and took the food materials which would be utilized out from the refrigerator. Rolling her sleeves up, she began to deal with these food materials. Uncle Xu told Lu Boyan that Su Jianan was in the kitchen. He walked to the door of the kitchen questioningly and saw Su Jianan processing a chub. “Bang"! Beating the chub to faintness nimbly, she cleared off the scales carefully, cut open the side face and took out the visceral. Via a few cuts, she separated the head and the tail, also the fish bones and the fish flesh successfully. The entire set of motion was natural and spontaneous. It was possible that the fish-mongers in the market could not beat her when it came to the nimbleness. After that, she cut the fish flesh into the thin fillet, putting the left head, tail and fishbone into a small clean bowl for backup. From beginning to end, her sma
It was until she received Captain Yan's hint that Su Jianan then glanced backward—to her surprise, it was really Lu Boyan! How could he end up here! Su Jianan was so shocked that she almost fell from the chair. Jiang Shaokai subconsciously intended to hold Su Jianan up. But Lu Boyan reached his hands out faster than Jiang Shaokai did. With pampering smile on his dashing eyes, he held her up affectionately and said, "Are you so happy to see me here?" Su Jianan smiled drily and replied. "Why are you here?" "I am here to discuss business." Lu Boyan lowered his voice and whispered in her ears, "You come to the private room with me." His breath was lukewarm. His charming voice was pretty low and soft. His thin lip touched Su Jianan's auricle intentionally or unintentionally and it tickled Su Jianan's ears a bit. The itching was spread from her ears to her heart. For just one instant, she felt herself fallin
Lu Boyan reached the passenger's side of his car and opened the door. Su Jianan got in obediently. After settling herself into the passenger seat, Su Jianan took out a black card and handed it to Lu Boyan the moment he was in the car. "Here." Lu Boyan frowned. "The card doesn't work?" "You gave me the wrong card," Su Jianan said earnestly. "My salary for two years is 480, 000 in total. But you gave me a credit card. What, you want me to use up exactly 480, 000 worth of credits and then return the card to you? But that's going to be a real pain. How am I supposed to keep track of the amount I spend every time I use it..." The crease on Lu Boyan's brow deepened. "You only want two years' worth of salary?" He seemed to recall that yesterday Su Jianan had mentioned something about taking her responsibilities seriously for the next two years. Why only two years? "That was what you said, wasn'
Lu Boyan's request was to have Su Jianan press on his needle wound as they walked out of the hospital together. But in truth, it was Lu Boyan doing the walking while dragging her along. Due to his long strides, Su Jianan had to hurry her steps just to keep up. "I think it's better that you stay here tonight for observation," Su Jianan said, a little out of breath. "It's not like the house would run away." "Lu Boyan, gastric problems shouldn't be taken lightly." "Lu Boyan..." Frowning, Lu Boyan stopped in his tracks. "Su Jianan, why are you still as talkative as when you're young?" She was like this too when she was ten. She would huddle beside him, wearing the branded princess dress that Su Yicheng had brought back from England, batting those bright eyes at him. "Brother Boyan, why aren't you talking?" she had said. "Brother, won't you get bored?. Let's play a game together, okay? Bro
Su Jianan stuck out her tongue obediently. The tip of her tongue had been scalded red. There were even signs of blistering, which had her panting in pain. Frowning, Lu Boyan went to retrieve the first-aid kit. When he returned, Su Jianan heard two hisses. Fumes carrying a minty fragrance assaulted the tip of her tongue. They spray suppressed the burning sensation on her tongue, providing her great relief. "Thanks." Due to the burn on her tongue, Su Jianan's accent came out a little funny. Her voice became softer and more delicate. When it reached his ears, it felt as if a soft, tiny hand had reached in and stroked his heart. Perhaps it was due to pain, but her crystalline eyes looked as if they were fogged over by a layer of water vapor. It was as if the pain was so unbearable that she could barely speak. It made her look extremely pitiable. "Su Jianan, how is it possible for your stupidity to reach such an extent?" Lu Boyan sai