Are You Allergic To Romance? - Chapter 35
Chapter 35: Holding You in the Rain
Jing Yuan listened to Xie Mianzhi’s lively description, and was even called the title “Jing Yuan Little Princess.”
She couldn’t help but murmur Xie Mianzhi’s embarrassing name for her, “Jing Yuan… Little Princess?” She wasn’t quite sure if the other person was calling her.
“Yep, that’s right. Every girl who receives flowers is a little princess and needs to be cared for with heart. My mom told me that,” Xie Mianzhi didn’t feel anything was amiss. In her eyes, Jing Yuan was someone she, Xie Mianzhi, needed to treat with sincerity.
Listening to Xie Mianzhi’s gentle narration, Jing Yuan was momentarily lost, unsure what to say.
So, was she now the person Xie Mianzhi was caring for with her heart?
Jing Yuan dared not think too much, nor did she dare to ask. She just looked down at the string of beautiful little flowers, which indeed looked like small goldfish. This was probably the origin of the flower’s name.
So Xie Mianzhi was teasing her using a homophone Jing Yuan sounds similar to ‘goldfish’ in this context of the flower name.
Jing Yuan looked up, meeting the other’s bright, spirited eyes, and felt utterly helpless.
Yet, it also made her heart immensely happy.
“Thank you,” Jing Yuan said genuinely. Because Xie Mianzhi said she wanted to give them to her, she didn’t know why, but upon receiving this bouquet, her heart was beating with excitement.
This was the first time she had received flowers from someone other than her family in a long time.
It was from Xie Mianzhi.
“Then smile. Shouldn’t you say ‘thank you’ with a smile?” Xie Mianzhi wanted to see Jing Yuan smile openly. The other person was always so reserved, rarely showing much expression.
What a pity, when she clearly had such a good appearance, always looking so placid and detached.
Jing Yuan clearly hadn’t anticipated Xie Mianzhi making this request. Her expression was stiff and contorted.
“You’re making this difficult for me,” Jing Yuan said.
“What? I give you flowers, and you can’t even smile? If I received flowers from you, I’d definitely smile broadly with glee,” Xie Mianzhi adhered to the principle that a forced melon is still sweet. This time, she wanted to see the little savior’s look of being forced to smile for her.
She had paid for them. Although this kind of thinking was a bit like the forced buying and selling of ancient times, she, Xie Mianzhi, inherently had the boldness to achieve her goals by any means necessary.
“Come on, come on. For the sake of the snapdragons [little goldfish grass], why don’t you try to grin broadly like me?” Xie Mianzhi coaxed.
Grin broadly?
Miss Xie Mianzhi always spoke so exaggeratedly.
Jing Yuan looked at the other’s domineering manner. Normally, she genuinely wouldn’t indulge in such super “rogue” behavior, but since the person was this person, she couldn’t muster any temper. “Do you really want to see me smile that much?”
“I do,” Xie Mianzhi was eager.
Jing Yuan was very confused. Hadn’t she ever smiled in front of Xie Mianzhi? She recalled doing so many times.
She met Xie Mianzhi’s incredibly expectant gaze at this moment, and could only stiffly purse her lips, then raised a smile she thought was kind and cheerful, though it was utterly unnatural.
One second, two seconds, three seconds…
Xie Mianzhi looked at the little savior’s incredibly deliberate, stiff smile, which was practically like facing an execution, and immediately burst into laughter.
She chuckled out loud, laughing heartily and happily.
“How can someone laugh so ungracefully?” Jing Yuan couldn’t help but retort when she saw the reaction.
She knew Xie Mianzhi was overjoyed because of her stiff, fake smile, but she had to admit, Miss Xie’s laughter was very infectious.
It included both goose laughter and pig laughter.
Hearing Jing Yuan say this about her, Xie Mianzhi had to slowly rein in her laughter. “Oh? Are you being disrespectful to me?”
“You’re the one who has been laughing at me the whole time,” Jing Yuan good-naturedly pointed out the antics of a certain Miss who had been making fun of her from the start.
“No, I just thought your… smile was very special. I couldn’t help myself for a moment,” Xie Mianzhi pushed her sunglasses up and slowly explained.
Seeing Jing Yuan still staring at her, with a somewhat hurt expression, she quickly added, “Ah, I really wasn’t laughing at you. Honestly, I’m rarely that happy. I’m usually very serious, and I don’t usually act like that, but seeing you, I feel a little more relaxed and comfortable, and the laughter just came out.”
Jing Yuan quietly listened to Xie Mianzhi describe how she felt around her. She liked that adjective: relaxed and comfortable.
It was as if Xie Mianzhi saw her as a friend, or someone she could be close to.
“So you laughed like a…”
“How dare you say that word on my territory?” Xie Mianzhi immediately cut her off fiercely, her almond eyes wide, glaring at a certain junior, who dared to tease her, laughing that her voice was unladylike, like a goose honking.
Jing Yuan immediately half-covered her face with the flowers and shook her head. She dared not provoke this territory’s Big Sis.
Seeing that Jing Yuan still knew how to be flexible, Xie Mianzhi motioned for her to sit properly. She was going to take her to a high-end restaurant, opened by her friend, who had also invited her to invest. However, she wasn’t interested in the catering business and just put in a little money for fun.
Having been there a few times, she knew the taste of the food and thought Jing Yuan would like it.
As the car was about to approach Lanxi Restaurant, small raindrops began to fall from the sky.
Watching the automatic wipers clear the rain from the windshield, Xie Mianzhi helplessly pulled at the corner of her mouth. Why did the weather forecast say it would be sunny today? Why did it start raining as soon as the little savior arrived?
“It’s raining,” Jing Yuan, sitting beside her, said suddenly.
“Yeah. You’re probably the Rain God. It started raining in Linxi City as soon as you arrived,” Xie Mianzhi rested one hand on the car window, steering with the other, and joked.
Rain God? Little Savior, Little Kid, and other unknown ones.
Xie Mianzhi was truly in the habit of giving her these strange titles.
“Hmm…” Jing Yuan couldn’t refute the other’s words and pursed her lips.
Xie Mianzhi glanced at Jing Yuan. It was true that the neighboring Liantan City was almost always overcast and rainy year-round, probably because it was close to the sea, and the entire city felt as illusory as if it were in a water mist.
In fact, living there all year, she found it quite hard to imagine. After all, not getting sunlight for a long time could make a person feel cold and gloomy.
Just like Jing Yuan’s… dark circles.
Thinking of this, Xie Mianzhi forced back the upward curve of her lips. Damn it, she wanted to laugh again.
She quickly changed the subject to distract herself.
“Do you like rain?” Xie Mianzhi asked.
She remembered there was an umbrella in the trunk.
Jing Yuan blinked, unsure whether to nod or shake her head. She shouldn’t be adverse to rain.
On rainy days, she preferred to stay in the sea, occasionally emerging to the surface. Getting rained on was quite pleasant.
Especially during stormy weather, the waves were aggressive and fierce, which was very stimulating and would ignite her hunting desire.
“You don’t like rain.” Jing Yuan felt that Miss Xie Mianzhi should prefer sunshine, just like her—radiating a strong, flamboyant light, glittering brightly.
Xie Mianzhi pondered for a moment, looked up at the rain outside the car window, and said softly, “In the past, I didn’t like rainy days. I always felt they were cold and damp, and everything was troublesome. However, now I feel quite good about it.”
Jing Yuan was curious whether Xie Mianzhi’s “now” referred to the present time they were spending together or…
But Xie Mianzhi had already parked the car in a parking spot right outside the restaurant entrance—one of the few outdoor spots, the VIP exclusive location.
However, this was a bit troublesome in the rain.
“I’ll go to the front trunk to get an umbrella,” Xie Mianzhi said.
Jing Yuan stopped her, saying, “I’ll go get it.”
“No, sit down and obey me.” Xie Mianzhi immediately spoke out to stop her. This was her territory, and she needed Jing Yuan to sit in the car and wait for her to open the door.
“But…”
Jing Yuan tried to get up but was pushed back by Xie Mianzhi. Seeing Xie Mianzhi’s stubbornness, she could only nod in agreement.
“Be a good girl and listen.” With that, Xie Mianzhi pushed the car door open. Instantly, the wind and rain were far more intense than imagined.
She quickly ran to the front of the car and opened the front trunk. Fortunately, Rong Cheng had put a fancy umbrella there at the time.
However, just as the black umbrella automatically opened, a strong gust of wind carrying dense, fine rain swept in unceremoniously. The black umbrella in her hand was clearly about to be blown away by this fierce gale.
“I f*ing sh!” Xie Mianzhi cursed in a low voice in desperation and let out a frustrated growl.
Xie Mianzhi didn’t care about her wind-blown, messy hair. She desperately tried to hold onto the fancy umbrella that was about to be blown away by the wind, but unfortunately, her balance was not perfect in this wind and rain.
No, absolutely not. She must not make a fool of herself in front of Jing Yuan… Xie Mianzhi screamed in horror in her heart, cursing this awful weather.
She hated this world! This sh1t-like world!
Just as she realized she was about to fall forward.
A cold hand suddenly appeared, then tightly pulled her from behind, pulling her whole body into the arms of the person behind her.
At the same time, the black umbrella was propped over her head as if by magic, shielding her from the rustling fine rain.
Xie Mianzhi raised her head in disbelief, looking at the person holding her. When she met those captivating golden eyes.
Xie Mianzhi felt her heart pounding like a runaway, foolish roe deer.
“You…” She blinked frantically, a little disbelieving. A second ago, she had seen Jing Yuan sitting in the car. “How… how did you get here?”
Jing Yuan didn’t answer the question. She saw Xie Mianzhi’s unsteady chest, and only after the other person was standing properly did she gently remind her of the strands of hair drooping on her face, “Your hair.”
Xie Mianzhi finally realized it. She could only slowly steady her feet and awkwardly brush away the few strands of hair on her face. Her heart was still pounding furiously. She didn’t know if it was from being startled by the scene just now or from Jing Yuan’s sudden appearance. In any case, thankfully she didn’t fall.
But she didn’t completely tidy her hair.
“I didn’t expect the wind to be so strong outside. I originally thought parking closer would be better,” Xie Mianzhi explained, her cheeks slightly recovering their calmness.
Seeing the person beside her quietly watching her, as if listening, she immediately thought of the curse word she had uttered in her moment of panic. Xie Mianzhi coughed awkwardly. “You didn’t hear what I said… um, that, right?”
Jing Yuan had been standing in the direction of the wind, shielding the lightly-dressed Xie Mianzhi from the driving rain. While Xie Mianzhi was talking, she had silently helped to brush the strands of hair that were constantly bothering Xie Mianzhi’s eyes to one side.
When she heard Xie Mianzhi’s awkward question, she immediately guessed what Xie Mianzhi was referring to.
That fierce curse word.
It was quite cute.
Jing Yuan shook her head and flatly denied it: “I didn’t hear anything.”
Thank goodness, that’s good.
Xie Mianzhi breathed a sigh of relief. She had to maintain her lady-like image.
“I really miscalculated. The wind in Linxi City almost blew me away. I almost fell. Give me the umbrella.” After steadying her feet, Xie Mianzhi looked at Jing Yuan holding the umbrella, whose shoulder was getting wet, and gestured for the umbrella. She would hold it. Jing Yuan clearly didn’t know how to hold an umbrella.
Jing Yuan didn’t hand it to her. She just said, “Let me do it,” and shielded Xie Mianzhi on the side away from the fierce wind, motioning for the other person to just lead the way.
Xie Mianzhi had to stick close to Jing Yuan, hiding under the umbrella, and pointed toward the restaurant ahead.
Fortunately, the restaurant entrance had anti-slip mats, preventing their esteemed guest from slipping.
During this time, Jing Yuan kept an eye on Xie Mianzhi’s steps. The new shoes the other person was wearing were indeed not suitable for walking on wet outdoor ground; they were more suited for stepping on a red carpet.
She even felt an urge to just carry Xie Mianzhi over.
“What, do you like my high heels?”
They reached the restaurant entrance. A waiter immediately came over to greet them. As Jing Yuan closed the umbrella, Xie Mianzhi chuckled and asked the person beside her, who had been constantly looking down at her shoes.
“If you like them, I’ll buy you a pair,” Xie Mianzhi looked at the sneakers on Jing Yuan’s feet. The other person seemed never to have worn high heels in front of her.
“No, I just saw that they got rained on,” Jing Yuan said with a hint of regret. Xie Mianzhi always cared a lot about her attire, and her newly bought shoes had gotten dirty because she was walking with her.
Xie Mianzhi noticed Jing Yuan’s slight expression. She lifted her foot. Normally, she would be upset, after all, these shoes were new. However, she was having dinner with the little savior today, and her mood was so pleasant that she could completely ignore these things.
“It’s fine. Spotted patterns are very fashionable this year,” Xie Mianzhi smiled and tilted her head. Her words instantly dispelled the self-blame in Jing Yuan’s heart.
Under the eaves, she saw Jing Yuan’s left shoulder and couldn’t help but take a handkerchief from her bag. While wiping, she apologized, “Sorry, you got rained on. You’re all wet.”
Jing Yuan lowered her eyes, watching Xie Mianzhi wipe her shoulder. She almost blurted out without thinking: “It’s okay. I love getting rained on.”
“What?” Xie Mianzhi couldn’t help but laugh.
“I love getting rained on, really.” Jing Yuan affirmed again. She looked at Xie Mianzhi with great sincerity. She knew this statement sounded foolish, but if she could be treated like this by Xie Mianzhi, she wouldn’t mind getting rained on more.
Xie Mianzhi looked at Jing Yuan’s appearance, which was like a well-behaved Golden Retriever standing quietly after the rain, and chuckled softly: “Who loves getting rained on? You’re like a little idiot.”