Chapter 613: 320 Brothers (First Update)
Chapter 613: 320 Brothers (First Update)
By December, the weather had gotten much colder.
These days, the door across the street was almost broken by endless deliveries. Han Suwen had seen batches of furniture and electrical appliances being sent in, which indicated that the people intended to stay for a long time.
For all three meals a day, Han Suwen prepared the food and sent it over, and the pure young man brought boxes of meat and fruits home.
Ming Chen was the one who often ran across the street the most. Basically, he would bring his homework over after school and wouldn’t return until bedtime.
It seemed like he was treating his own home like a hotel and the place across the street as his real home.
One day at noon, Han Suwen brought over some dumplings, and upon entering, the place was nicely decorated, showing the good taste of the owner.
“Wenwen, have a seat.” Qu Feitai poured her a cup of tea.
“Don’t fuss, I’m just here to bring you dumplings.” Han Suwen placed the thermal container on the table.
“Dumplings are best eaten hot. These are made with shepherd’s purse and pork filling. I’m not sure if you like them. There’s also a rib soup, which I cooked over low heat for hours.”
“I feel so embarrassed having Wenwen send me food every day.” Qu Feitai had been eating so nutritiously and richly lately that he felt his abdominal muscles were about to disappear.
“We’re neighbors, and it’s only good for us to help each other. Besides, you’re friends with Miss Ming and teach Ming Chen piano, so there’s nothing wrong with me taking extra care of you. You look much better recently, but you still need to keep taking your medicine. I’ll have Xiao Ying bring it over when it’s ready. Take your time eating, I’ll head back first.”
Han Suwen stood up to leave, and Qu Feitai hurriedly got up as well, “Wenwen, how has Ming Jing been recently?”
Ming Jing never went out, so aside from a glimpse of her before he fainted the last time, he hadn’t seen her since.
Although they lived across the street, he didn’t dare to barge in uninvited.
Han Suwen smiled as if she could see through his thoughts, “Don’t worry, Miss Ming is doing just fine. Hold on, dumplings are to be eaten with vinegar, do you have vinegar here? If not, I can bring you some.”
“I have some.”
He saw her off at the door, watching her enter the opposite house, then closed the door and returned to the table, opening the lunchbox.
One serving of dumplings and one serving of rib soup, both looking incredibly tempting.
Wenwen’s cooking skills were beyond criticism, and Qu Feitai was afraid he wouldn’t be able to eat food from elsewhere if he continued eating her dishes; he had become spoiled.
At that moment, his phone buzzed with a string of messages, and Qu Feitai took a look at it.
White Moon was making waves in the group chat.
——@Mr. Song @Jiangshui Biyutian, stop pretending to be dead, have any of you seen Ming Jing? If my family wasn’t keeping such a close eye on me, I would’ve flown to Jiangzhou already. Can’t count on you two useless guys.
Mr. Song: Didn’t you know that even Ran Tengxiao was turned away at the door? Seeing Ming Jing now is even harder than the fat geese seeing Xiao Fei.
Bai Kaishui: Who the hell is Ran Tengxiao???
Mr. Song: The fact that you don’t know is a blessing; being a fool is the happiest thing.
The slandered Bai Ziyan was furious, @Qu Feitai: Do you know who Ran Tengxiao is?
Qu Feitai sent a picture of his lunch in the group: Eating, do not cue.
Bai Kaishui: How can you still eat? Your unrequited love persona must be crumbling, right? I knew men’s mouths are nothing but lies.
Qu Feitai chuckled: Bro, I’m eating the lunch Ming Jing’s family made for me, and I’ve been eating it for a week now. Am I supposed to be proud?
Mr. Song: ???
Bai Kaishui: !!!
Bai Kaishui: You heartless guy, you actually went to Jiangzhou without telling me, and even stayed at Ming Jing’s place. What a schemer!
Mr. Song: Xiao Fei, you actually came to Jiangzhou? Are you really staying at Ming Jing’s place? [Eating melon]
Bai Kaishui: Look how smug he is. Dream on! If Ming Jing really let him stay at her place, I’ll unscrew my head to use as a ball.
Qu Feitai: Go ahead and be jealous!
The two were on the verge of fighting in the group chat, but Jiang Jinchen never said a word throughout the whole conversation.
It was Mr. Song who sensed that something was wrong, @Jiangshui Biyutian: Jinchen, why haven’t you said anything?Bai Kaishui: Busy flirting with girls.
It took Jiang Jinchen a long while to reply: I’m participating in a competition recently, so I’m quite busy. Sorry about that, you guys chat.
Bai Ziyan created another small group, this time only adding Song Yinzhang and Qu Feitai.
Bai Ziyan: Do you guys feel that Jiang Jinchen has been acting weird lately?
Basically, the three of them chatted and bantered in the group every day. Jiang Jinchen used to join in, but these days he was completely silent, as if he didn’t exist.
This was totally abnormal.
Song Yinzhang: He’s in college, maybe he’s busier. I heard he’s a student council member, so he’s much busier than us.
Bai Ziyan: But he doesn’t even talk to us. I don’t think he considers us his brothers.
When Jiang Jinchen first came to Chunxi Court, he was only four or five years old. At that time, Bai Ziyan was the boss, bullying whoever he saw, and often bullied Jiang Jinchen. Jiang Jinchen was different from other bullied kids – he didn’t cry or report it. Bai Ziyan gradually found it boring and stopped bullying him. Once they had a fight, and Bai Ziyan angrily called him a fatherless wild child. That was the first time he realized how frightening Jiang Jinchen could be when he was angry; Bai Ziyan ended up lying in bed for days from the beating.
It was a case of not knowing each other until they fought. Later, with Song Yinzhang’s mediation, the two became good friends. Once Bai Ziyan gradually learned about Jiang Jinchen’s pitiful background, he truly changed his opinion of him.
Later, when they went to junior high, Jiang Jinchen was taken to Jiangzhou by his mother. Their relationship remained unchanged, but recently, Bai Ziyan sensed that something was troubling Jiang Jinchen.
Song Yinzhang: Xiao Bai, don’t say that. Don’t you know what kind of person Jinchen is? He always keeps his troubles to himself. As his brothers, we should care for him, not doubt him.
Bai Ziyan: What am I doubting? I just think he’s acting strange. If there’s nothing wrong, then that’s even better.
Song Yinzhang: I’ll ask him later.
Song Yinzhang was the central air conditioner, in charge of mediating conflicts among the brothers. Only he could do this job.
Song Yinzhang privately messaged Jiang Jinchen: Jinchen, are you okay lately? Are you too tired from studying? Let’s go out for a meal sometime, and let Xiao Fei treat us.
It took Jiang Jinchen two minutes to reply: Okay.
And then there was no follow-up.
At Jiangzhou University’s library during lunchtime, there weren’t many people. The young man sat in a corner, holding his phone. The materials in front of him remained on the same page for half an hour.
Lost in thought, the young man didn’t know how many pairs of eyes were secretly watching him.
On Jiangzhou University’s list of popular guys, Jiang Jinchen had been at the top since his entrance.
Handsome, good grades, got into Jiangzhou University’s top major through recommendation, student council member, and next year’s president’s first choice. It was said that his family background was also excellent. Numerous girls were chasing after him like fish crossing the river. However, this handsome, talented guy refused all of them. Even the school beauty let down her pride and extended an olive branch, only to be rejected mercilessly by him. The higher and colder he acted, the crazier those girls became. Everyone secretly bet on who could conquer this hard-to-get heartthrob.
The most competitive ones now were the school beauty Hu Guo’er and the computer department’s department flower Lin Ya.
Most people were betting on Lin Ya, after all, “proximity to the water tower gives the first pick of the moon.” Lin Ya and Jiang Jinchen were in the same class, so they had plenty of chances to see each other during class, which the school beauty couldn’t compare with.
Hu Guo’er brought a lunch box and said coquettishly, “Jinchen, I made this lunch myself. You haven’t eaten yet, right? Why don’t you fill your stomach first?”
If Hu Guo’er had any advantage, it was that her father was a high-ranking official in the school, a former professor who later pursued a political career.
Jiang Jinchen didn’t even glance at her, packed up his textbooks, put them in his backpack, and left.
“Don’t waste your time doing these pointless things. I will never like you.”
Leaving behind a cold statement, the young man left, leaving everyone with a tall and aloof figure.
Soon, the campus forum headlines would be “School beauty’s confession rejected on the spot, losing face all the way to the Pacific.”
Hu Guo’er’s face turned pale. She almost foresaw how people would ridicule her behind her back.
“He’ll never like her? Ha ha, how charmless is this school beauty? It’s so funny. She’s lost all her dignity, right?”
“I think Jiang Jinchen might like Lin Ya? I heard from my classmates in the computer department that during the last lecture, Lin Ya was sitting with Jiang Jinchen, and their relationship seemed unusual.”
“Has Lin Ya won this heartthrob competition?”
“Jiang Jinchen’s words just now were quite meaningful. ‘I will never like you,’ but he didn’t say he didn’t like Lin Ya.”
Hearing the whispers around her, Hu Guo’er’s face gradually turned pale.
“Lin Ya, you bitch.”