Are You Allergic To Romance? - Chapter 11

Chapter 11: You Are Mine.

About five minutes passed.

The door suddenly opened.

Xie Mianzhi’s sharp eyes scanned the surroundings. It was as if any slight movement or sound could cause her to explode, but fortunately, the only person who could speak was sitting there absolutely still and well-behaved.

Xie Mianzhi tried to take a deep breath, calming her extremely volatile mood. After several repetitions, her expression returned to normal.

She tilted her head slightly, smiling as she returned the phone to Jing Yuan.

It was as if nothing had happened.

“I just called my dearest assistant and arranged for him to come over today, and to tow my car away for repairs,” Xie Mianzhi explained simply to Jing Yuan in a normal tone.

Jing Yuan looked at the now still cup and nodded silently, secretly admiring the speed at which the other person’s mood changed.

However, the idea of going to Siberia to catch a seal was quite charming. Her mother had once rescued a seal, but unfortunately, it died in the end (scared to death by her mother).

Jing Yuan still didn’t dare to speak, afraid of being caught in the crossfire, so she decided to be a stone person.

Xie Mianzhi watched the person in front of her remain silent, not asking her anything, and felt bored. Wasn’t Jing Yuan curious about her identity at all?

If it were anyone else, upon hearing some of the things she said, seeing her designer clothes, and her luxury car, they would at least ask more, try to get closer, establish a relationship, and try to ask for more compensation or benefits. Isn’t that just human nature?

Yet, this person remained silent.

It was consistently her talking and the other person listening.

Was she foolish, or genuinely uninterested in her identity?

But who wouldn’t be interested in money?

Just as Xie Mianzhi was about to ask if there was anything she wanted, Jing Yuan’s phone rang.

After hearing the other party say “Mm” and hang up, she seemed poised to leave.

“What’s wrong?” Xie Mianzhi followed her to the door. Where was this little brat going?

“A colleague has a personal issue, so I have to go to work early to cover their shift,” Jing Yuan informed her as she stood up.

“…You’re going now?” Xie Mianzhi blinked, slightly missing a beat. Where should she go then? She certainly wouldn’t be allowed to stay alone at the other person’s house. “What about me?”

“Stay here,” Jing Yuan told Xie Mianzhi firmly after a brief glance. “Stay at my place until your assistant comes to pick you up.”

Xie Mianzhi’s eyes instantly widened in disbelief. It was as if the other person had seen through her momentary worry before saying that, but Xie Mianzhi still needed to confirm: “Isn’t it a bit inappropriate for me to stay here alone in your house?”

Although she would certainly not touch any of the homeowner Jing Yuan’s things.

But Jing Yuan didn’t seem like the type to easily trust others, so why would she agree to let her stay here alone?

“There’s nothing here you need to pay special attention to. You can only use the refrigerator’s crisper drawer; there’s water and food you might need. But it’s best not to touch the freezer; it’s a bit messy and hasn’t been tidied.”

Jing Yuan made only this one request to Xie Mianzhi. The freezer contained some of her food, the organs of deep-sea creatures that humans haven’t seen, which weren’t suitable to be viewed, as they would probably cause physiological discomfort.

Other than that, she could fully entrust the handling to Xie Mianzhi.

Xie Mianzhi was stunned for a few seconds. She listened wide-eyed to everything Jing Yuan was saying to her, giving her no opportunity to interrupt.

Jing Yuan trusted her that much?

Seeing that Jing Yuan was already ready to leave, she quickly followed up with a sentence: “I’ve saved my number in your phone. I’ll contact you this afternoon!”

“Okay.” Jing Yuan gave her a long look, then left.

Xie Mianzhi watched the departing figure for a while before returning to the doorway. She stood there, looking up at the sky, which was starting to be covered by dark clouds.

“Is it going to rain…”

…

“According to the meteorological station report: heavy rain exceeding 50 millimeters in 7 hours is expected in Wenqi District, Lianhe District, Fenglü District, Lianhua District, Jingkai District, Misong County, Peiping County, and other areas in our city within the next 24 hours, possibly accompanied by strong convective weather such as lightning, thunder squalls, and short-term heavy rainfall. Citizens are advised to reduce travel…”

The TV in the store was broadcasting today’s weather warning.

“The weather’s getting bad, and fewer customers are coming, so we’re getting a bit of a break.”

The person speaking was Xu Xin, who was on shift with Jing Yuan. He was around the same age as her and was a popular, sunny guy.

Jing Yuan looked up at him, nodding slightly in response.

Xu Xin watched Jing Yuan, who was taking inventory. She always gave people a very cold attitude.

‘Jing Yuan is a silent ice beauty; there’s no chance of chasing her. Maybe she already has a boyfriend,’ the colleague ‘Sister Jin’ had told him.

However, he did have a crush on Jing Yuan, which was why he insisted on working the night shift here despite having family matters to attend to. He finally had a chance to be alone with her, and he wanted to say a few more words. It would be even better if he could close the gap between them.

“Jing Yuan, about that…”

“Hmm?”

“It’s expected to pour tonight, and you usually take the bus. If possible…” Xu Xin was about to offer to drive her home tonight, but Jing Yuan’s phone rang.

Jing Yuan walked to the side to answer the call.

She first paused when she saw the number. The contact display showed ‘Xie Mianzhi.’

It was the number Xie Mianzhi had saved on her phone.

Had her assistant come to pick her up? She was leaving.

Jing Yuan instantly thought of the possibility of the other party calling her in advance because she was leaving. A faint sense of disappointment arose in her heart, and she answered the call after the third ring.

“Jing Yuan, it’s Xie Mianzhi.”

The sky was gray, and the atmosphere was always gloomy and eerie, but Xie Mianzhi’s voice was always bright and cheerful.

This made Jing Yuan feel comfortable listening to her, similar to that subtle feeling she had at home this morning.

Jing Yuan listened quietly, and after a few seconds, she responded, “Mm, I know.”

“Thank you for giving me shelter. I’ve been very safe here. My assistant just arrived.”

Xie Mianzhi, holding her new phone, was talking to Jing Yuan. Outside the window, a light drizzle had already begun to fall. This was not a good sign for someone preparing to travel.

Rong Cheng had never seen his boss speak to someone so calmly, especially on a rainy day. Xie Mianzhi absolutely hated cloudy, rainy weather; it would dirty her shoes and spoil her rare good mood.

So, Rong Cheng, who had been sent over, was prepared to endure his boss’s fierce greeting, but she only asked him if he had brought everything she had requested.

Yes, everything was brought, along with another luxury car driven by another subordinate.

Rong Cheng didn’t quite understand his boss’s thinking. Logically, this move was to bring her back, so why did it feel slightly different?

She was in no rush, talking on the phone.

But as the most capable subordinate, he would, of course, follow all his boss’s requirements.

For instance, now he was avoiding his boss’s conversation with the mysterious person on the phone and bringing the items his boss had ordered from the trunk into the room.

All sorts of items.

And his boss actually ate instant noodles last night. She was a person who was picky about even abalone and sea cucumber. He had never seen Xie Mianzhi eat instant noodles.

His boss explained in a casual tone: She was tired of those luxurious ingredients and occasionally wanted to try these.

“Brother Rong, is our Miss not planning to leave yet? Or…” Xiao Shu, who had just parked Xie Mianzhi’s other white luxury sedan in the rain, asked suspiciously. She looked around and felt something was off.

“Do you think I can guess? Obviously not. The old lady is probably angry, and Miss probably doesn’t want to go back…” Rong Cheng shrugged, noncommittal.

“Then why not stay in a hotel? Staying in this… I’m not sure what kind of person’s home, is it a bit…” Min Shu looked up at the interior of the villa. Although it was clean and tidy, it felt a little eerie.

Who would choose to live alone on a secluded cliff by the sea!? It was too unsafe.

The surroundings were barren land, and behind it was the sea.

“I just heard, it’s a woman,” Rong Cheng suddenly blurted out, but he immediately reminded the overly curious Min Shu not to ask what she shouldn’t.

After the two of them, the ‘tools,’ finished tidying up, they could only wait silently on the side.

(Then have a safe journey.)

Xie Mianzhi heard the female voice on the other end of the phone and couldn’t help but curve her lips. Did this person think she was leaving?

Indeed, logically, since Rong Cheng and the others had come to pick her up, she should leave. She had no reason to stay at someone else’s house anymore.

No, she did have a reason.

She was the second daughter of the Xie family. A drop of kindness should, of course, be repaid in person. She couldn’t just leave a pile of money on the coffee table in the living room and walk away, could she? That would be too rude.

Although she had initially thought of doing that, she still didn’t want to leave so soon. Xie Mianzhi attributed the reason for not wanting to leave to the bad weather, the heavy rain, the difficult roads, and the danger.

“Mm, thank you. But don’t worry about the compensation; you’ll see it when you get home. Well, you go ahead and get busy. Bye.” Xie Mianzhi said.

When Jing Yuan, who had been standing at the store entrance to answer the call, heard this, she didn’t feel the expected surprise. Instead, it confirmed that Miss Xie was leaving soon.

She paused for a few seconds before saying, “Mm, okay, goodbye.”

After saying farewell to the other party, Jing Yuan ended the call. She silently stared at the three characters of Xie Mianzhi on the screen, then put away her phone and continued inventorying items.

The high neck of her shirt made her throat feel a little dry. She irritably tugged at her collar, looking out the window. The rain outside was noticeably heavier.

The music in the store played a very fitting sad, lyrical song for a rainy day.

About forty minutes later, Jing Yuan was still inventorying the goods.

“Was that your friend just now?”

Suddenly, Xu Xin’s voice came from behind her.

Jing Yuan shook her head, unwilling to communicate further with the other party.

Xu Xin didn’t mind, as Jing Yuan was usually this indifferent in the store, but he had observed a different expression on her face when she was on the phone earlier.

During the call, Jing Yuan’s expression was very soft, which was why he asked if it was a ‘friend.’ The other party denied it.

“Actually, I was going to ask, seeing that the weather is bad and the forecast says a big storm is coming soon, how are you getting home tonight? The bus will take a long time…” Xu Xin walked over to Jing Yuan, asking with good intentions.

Jing Yuan frowned slightly at the question. To be honest, she really didn’t want Xu Xin to talk to her. Her mood was a bit low right now.

“Walking back,” Jing Yuan said truthfully.

“Walking back!? It’s such heavy rain, and it’s definitely not safe for you to walk back alone as a girl.” Xu Xin reacted strongly. If he didn’t play the protector now, when would he? “Jing, Jing Yuan, I drove today!”

“I know.” Jing Yuan, of course, knew the car parked behind the store belonged to Xu Xin. She heard from Sister Jin that it was a gift from his restaurant-owning father. He had just gotten it but had already scratched it in several places; his driving skills were terrible.

“I can drive you,” Xu Xin said to Jing Yuan, mustering the courage to say what he had been contemplating for a long time. Seeing Jing Yuan didn’t react, he immediately followed up.

“What do you think?”

“Thank you, no need.”

Jing Yuan walked to the side near the doorframe, politely refusing his offer. Her gaze fell upon the new flavor of candy on the shelf beside her.

Lychee-flavored lollipops… Jing Yuan stared blankly.

The rejected Xu Xin was somewhat discouraged. He really wanted to take her home. Even if this ice beauty was so cold, he didn’t mind. He just wanted to get closer and leave a good impression as a protector!

Xu Xin noticed Jing Yuan seemed to be lost in thought. Who could look so delicate and lovely even while staring at a lollipop, with a hint of vulnerability she usually didn’t show? This made him want to reach out and touch her shoulder without thinking.

Suddenly, a rude car engine roar came from outside the store, startling the area.

Xu Xin was also startled and withdrew his hand, staring dumbfounded at the luxurious white sports car that had suddenly arrived in the rain. The car’s headlights even flashed twice aggressively in his direction.

As if warning him.

Did he see it wrong?

Soon, a sexy woman wearing a beige overcoat and a tight black dress underneath stepped out of the driver’s seat. Her figure was remarkably alluring and eye-catching.

The woman held a black umbrella, the large edge obscuring the upper half of her exquisite face. Her flame-like red lips looked extremely dazzling and enchanting under the misty streetlights.

She slowly walked up the steps, lifted the black umbrella, and her eyes met Jing Yuan’s, who was standing at the door.

The faint thunder and the rustling rain seemed to suddenly stop at this moment.

Jing Yuan’s originally dim eyes instantly widened in surprise. She stared blankly at the person who appeared before her.

“Do you need me to drive you home, my little savior?”