Li Si watched as Jiang Fan extravagantly went about in the gold shop, asking the salesperson to take out the gold baby bracelet, gold pendant, and finally even decided to buy a piece of gold inlaid jade she had set her eyes on!
She quickly stopped Jiang Fan: "I was joking with you, just buy one thing! Why are you buying so much?"
"Because I’m going abroad for four years! By the ti the baby is born, I can give one gift each year on their birthday. Maybe when the gifts are all given, I’ll be back!"
Jiang Fan gently rubbed the delicate, adorable gold bracelet, marveling at how fascinating it was—such a tiny baby, slowly growing bigger.
"So, are you seriously not coming back even once during those four years?" Li Si had sensed sothing amiss for a while now, and seeing Jiang Fan’s behavior, couldn’t help but ask.
Jiang Fan shook her head: "Why bother coming back? The plane tickets are so expensive!"
"Gosh! Are you really soone who cares about that little bit of money?"
Li Si felt she had to sit down and have a proper chat with this person. With a quick apology to the salesperson, she decisively pulled Jiang Fan out of the gold shop.
They stopped at a quieter corner outside the store. Li Si glanced around—they were in a spot with lighter foot traffic. "Xiao Fan, I’ve been wanting to ask since we t today, what’s going on with you? We’re still good friends, right? Is there sothing you can’t tell ?"
Jiang Fan sighed and gave her a fleeting glance: "Actually, it’s nothing—just a crush, that’s all!"
"What?" Li Si was completely stunned by this revelation, feeling as if she’d been scorched inside and out. She had suspected sothing related to love troubles, but she hadn’t expected it to be a crush!
Jiang Fan chuckled at her overly shocked reaction. "Look at you, still the sa! You believe anything I say! I’m just joking! I’m about to go overseas, and I feel a bit nostalgic about leaving my holand. There’s nothing so dramatic going on with !"
"You’re impossible!" Li Si pushed her in frustration. This person had acted all deep and pensive, causing unnecessary worry for half the day.
Jiang Fan hadn’t expected the push and stumbled backward, accidentally bumping into a man who was passing by.
"Hey!"
"Sorry!" Jiang Fan quickly turned around to apologize.
Both were montarily stunned. The man’s eyes flashed with surprise as he said, "It’s you?!"
"It’s !"
Li Si, standing aside, was completely baffled by the strangely charged atmosphere between the two. The man was about 1.75 ters tall, with a face that carried a faint smile. His features were decent, but his thickly frad glasses gave him a scholarly air.
"You two know each other?" Li Si curiously asked, sweeping her gaze across the pair.
Jiang Fan’s eyes showed a brief flicker of loss, and she replied with a faint smile, "No, not really. There was this one ti my bag got snatched, and he helped get it back!"
The glasses-wearing man quickly waved his hand: "It was nothing, just a small effort on my part!"
He hadn’t thought much of it either—it had been an instinctive reaction at the ti, since the thief wasn’t far from him. His luck in track and field back in school helped him catch up—otherwise, chasing the thief down might not have been so easy.
"You’re too humble! And what a coincidence that you two bumped into each other. Why don’t we find a place to sit and chat?" Li Si noticed Jiang Fan’s subtle uneasiness and wanted to help her.
The glasses-wearing man adjusted his glasses and smiled apologetically, "There’s no need to go through such trouble! Unfortunately, I’ve got plans with my girlfriend today. How about we et another day?"
He had a good impression of Jiang Fan—this girl had been calm and collected even during the chaotic situation of her bag being snatched, running alongside him without any sign of panic. However, when it ca to physical endurance, it was clear she couldn’t quite keep up with n.
"Oh! I see! Then let’s talk next ti!" Li Si glanced at Jiang Fan, noticing her slight shake of the head. The words she had initially wanted to say got stuck in her throat.
The glasses-wearing man gave the pair a kind smile, bid them farewell, and walked ahead.
Jiang Fan stared at his departing back for a long mont before finally withdrawing her gaze. Facing Li Si’s probing look, she gave a sowhat desolate smile.
"Shall we find a place to sit and chat?" Li Si cocked an eyebrow and tugged at her arm.
"Sure!" Jiang Fan herself wanted a chance to let it out; it had been weighing on her heart for a while.
After Jiang Fan shared her story, Li Si couldn’t help but exclaim, "Talk about drama overload!"
The glasses-wearing man’s forr workplace happened to be in the high-rise building across from the café where Jiang Fan had previously planned to et Li Si.
Ever since Jiang Fan accidentally spotted him working there, she would occasionally choose a window seat at that café and sit there.
She didn’t know what had gotten into her. Truth be told, the glasses-wearing man wasn’t particularly outstanding. He wasn’t so dream-like ideal in terms of personality or capabilities—just soone who had perford a single act of bravery.
And yet Jiang Fan couldn’t begin to explain why seeing him made her feel so comfortable, so at ease.
By the ti she finally understood her own feelings and decided to make a move—ready to embrace the idea that chasing after him might be easier than she’d thought—it was already too late. He had a girlfriend. And that girlfriend happened to be soone they both knew: Kong Dan!
Jiang Fan learned about their relationship one day when she saw the glasses-wearing man pick up Kong Dan at the main entrance. The two walked away hand in hand, smiling warmly—and that was when everything clicked.
No wonder Kong Dan’s behavior had changed drastically. She wasn’t a fan of dressing up before, but now she wouldn’t leave the house without makeup. Sotis she’d spend half an hour on a single phone call, and her texts had beco constant.
It was clear she was in love—but Jiang Fan hadn’t expected the "him" to be the person she had been quietly admiring.
A later indirect inquiry revealed how simple their connection was, yet effective: Kong Dan’s aunt and the glasses-wearing man’s mom were acquaintances. Knowing both families wanted soone down-to-earth and reliable, they set the pair up. One thing led to another, and the two naturally began dating.
Coincidentally, Jiang Fan’s father wanted her to study abroad, so she didn’t resist and agreed to it.
In her heart, Jiang Fan thought it might be for the best. Studying abroad would be like "gold plating herself." After all, the prestige of studying overseas far surpassed that of staying in Beijing.
"Xiao Fan, this guy isn’t even your type! You’ll move on soon enough! Who hasn’t had a crush or two in their life?"
Li Si genuinely believed Jiang Fan’s feelings stemd from her lack of relationship experience. She’d mistaken the slight good feelings for love, for "the one." In reality, such things as love at first sight weren’t as common as people thought.
Moreover, things were what they were now—even though Kong Dan wasn’t exactly close with Jiang Fan, her relationship with the glasses-wearing man was legit, introduced through family. There was no one "in the wrong" here.
Jiang Fan scooped up a chunk of strawberry ice cream and placed it in her mouth, savoring the sweet coldness as it tickled her taste buds.
"I know! So, Sisi, don’t worry about —it’s really no big deal! By the way, now that you’re pregnant, is it okay for you to be eating ice cream?"
Jiang Fan had an admirable ability to quickly adjust her mood, seemingly acting as if nothing had ever happened.
Li Si swallowed her own delicious bite of ice cream and smiled joyfully: "A little won’t hurt! Xiao Fan, you wouldn’t understand—I always feel this burning sensation in my chest, and eating ice cream really helps soothe it!"
"That’s good! How’s Shasha doing in Beijing? I’ve chatted with her a few tis on QQ, but she always seems super busy."
"She’s a newcor—of course she’s busy! Haha, is she still keeping secrets from you?" Li Si wanted to steer Jiang Fan’s thoughts toward happier topics.
"What secrets?" Jiang Fan asked curiously, wondering if Bai Shasha had gotten back together with Cao Yufan again. That would be such a disgrace to won everywhere—there were plenty of n in the world, and cheating ones are bound to repeat their ways. A dog doesn’t stop eating its own excrent!
Li Si’s eyes lit up mischievously: "You know Xu Er, right?"
Jiang Fan’s mory flashed, and she exclaid, "Oh! Now I rember! That guy’s pretty funny—when you got engaged, the stuff he said was hilarious, one line after another!"
Later, when she and Shasha went to the airport, it was Xu Er and soone called Long Wu who escorted them. She and Shasha joked about how this group of people seed straight out of a Gu Long novel, all nicknas and numbers—it was oddly morable.
(To be continued. If you enjoy this story, visit Qidian (qidian) to vote for recomndations and monthly tickets. Your support is the author’s greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian to read.)
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