CH 27

“I’m a woman, thank you. If I was a man,” Ye Kehuan turned her head to the side and settled for a moment. “Maybe you would already…”

At this point, Ye Kehuan suddenly stopped her train of thought in time.

“If you were a man,” Jiang Laien slowly swept her eyes around Ye Kehuan, then put down her hand again, “how am I now?”

The buttons on Jiang Laien’s shirt were not buttoned properly, and there was another strand of hair lying on her collarbone, looking very alluring.

After staring for a while, Ye Kehuan hurriedly retracted her gaze, shook her head, and grabbed the things in her hands: “No, nothing, I will put these things in the kitchen first.”

“Yeah.” Jiang Laien nodded.

After that, Ye Kehuan walked into the kitchen quickly without saying anything. After putting the key on the counter, she lifted her head and let out a sigh.

Jiang Laien watched her back, smiling lightly, then walked in, casually folding her arms, leaning on the side and watching Ye Kehuan put things on the table.

She found that she was still the same as before; she loved to watch Ye Kehuan cook. Perhaps, she liked the way Ye Kehuan was cooking for her, or maybe she felt that Ye Kehuan and herself were like a family.

In short, it made her feel that her relationship with Ye Kehuan was very close.

After that, Jiang Laien walked over ,stood next to her, tilted her head, and watched her pour the grouper into a small bowl. “Seriously, I never expected that after so many years, in such a busy life, you and I would still be cooking like before, and you’re better than ever.”

“Yeah, I am such a person.” Ye Kehuan said with a smile.

Jiang Laien laughed, then tilted her head again and saw Ye Kehuan’s key on the counter. The small pendant on the keychain looked very old.

“The pendant on this keychain has been around for so many years. How am I only now finding out that you are still using it?” Jiang Laien picked up Ye Kehuan’s key as she spoke.

“Hmm… This may be my virtue. If I really like a wallet, or dress, or even a pen, I will use it until it breaks and can’t be used anymore, and if I don’t like it or it’s inappropriate, no matter how expensive it is, I always throw it to the bottom of a box to forget it. My mother always said that I lost her face. ‘She was born not bad, but she lives like a street urchin’. Every time she took me to a big occasion, she had to take care of me from head to toe personally to make sure nothing was wrong.” Ye Kehuan said, turning on the faucet to let water submerge the fish, and began to scrub.

Jiang Laien listened, put the key aside, and picked up the eggplant and the peeler, and started to peel with a smile: “Yeah, you are really sentimental. I still remember that at that time you liked a game called Gomoku, and then one day I looked for Gomoku. But you went back and forth several times on the way to school every day.”

The most amazing thing was that Ye Kehuan really found it in the end. Ye Kehuan laughed like a fool at the time.

After listening, Ye Kehuan brushed the fish again, and then turned her head to look at Jiang Laien: “It has nothing to do with the old days, but it has something to do with you.”

After hearing this, Jiang Laien unknowingly stopped the peeling action of her hands, and turned her head to look at Ye Kehuan.

“That was the first gift you gave me, and it was of great significance.” Ye Kehuan said.

“Do you even remember the first gift I gave you?” To be honest, Jiang Laien herself couldn’t remember what the first gift she gave Ye Kehuan was.

“Well, the first gift you gave me was Gomoku, the second gift was a music box, the third gift was a crystal bracelet, the fourth gift was a rubber superman, the fifth gift was a brooch, and the sixth gift was a comic…” After Ye Kehuan put the marinating fish aside, she began to clean the pork ribs.

After listening, Jiang Laien looked at her motionlessly. For a while, she felt as if she had been hit in her heart, and her nose was faintly sore.

After a while, Jiang Laien controlled her emotions, and her lips opened slightly: “You remember so clearly.”

“Maybe it’s because I care about it.” Ye Kehuan stared at the ribs, and then stretched out her hand to stir them several times. “I will always put a lot of energy into the people or things I care about. That way, you will definitely be impressed.”

When Jiang Laien heard this, thinking of the past, she couldn’t help closing her eyes: “Sorry, I was too naïve at the beginning. However, I really didn’t expect that you would still be willing to come back to me.”

“Being childish or something, who hasn’t been young before?” Ye Kehuan poured some water into the pot, put it on the stove, and lit the burner. “If I want to reconcile or not, I also look at the person, and their attitude. If you treated me like that, I wouldn’t necessarily be willing to look at you again. For example, if you were replaced by Du Mingan, it would be strange if I came back.”

Hearing the three words ‘Du Mingan’, Jiang Laien raised her eyebrows lightly, cut the eggplant into three pieces, and softly said: “When did you break up?”

Finally, the two talked about feelings for the first time.

“We split up shortly after your transfer.” Ye Kehuan said.

“So fast?” Jiang Laien was a little surprised, as she didn’t expect that.

“Well, because you left, I was in a bad mood all the time, I looked a little languid, and then one day he said something. He felt that his presence was not as strong as yours for me, and he wanted me to be happy but didn’t know where to start. Then he suddenly wanted to hug and kiss me, so I kicked him and ran away, and then we broke up the next day,” Ye Kehuan shook her head as she said, “When we started dating, I said that I would not do anything before graduation. It’s disgusting.”

“Then, after that, did you date again?” Jiang Laien cut the eggplant into small pieces slowly.

Ye Kehuan walked to her right, peeled the two green onions and knotted them, and shook her head: “No. Partly because I was disgusted by Du Mingan and suddenly lost interest in boys, partly because I felt that being single was pretty good. The people around me who were in love were always arguing and even fighting all the time. Just my time is quiet, why should I make myself unhappy?”

After listening, Jiang Laien bit her lower lip lightly, in a daze. Lost interest in boys, really?

Then, Ye Kehuan turned her head to look at Jiang Laien, and asked about her emotional world for the first time: “Then… what about you? Have you ever been in a relationship?”

Jiang Laien smiled and shook her head: “No.”

After Ye Kehuan put the sliced green onion, minced ginger, etc. into the pot, she pressed her fingers on the counter, looked at her sideways, and cleared her throat: “Not once?”

“Well, no.” Jiang Laien nodded.

“Unbelievable…” Ye Kehuan asked again after listening, “Have you ever met someone who has moved your heart?”

After hearing that question, Jiang Laien looked up at her, and shook her head after a while: “I have met someone who was heart-warming, and I met them a long time ago.”

Hearing this, Ye Kehuan slowed down unconsciously: “What kind of person was he?”

“She…” Jiang Laien began to wash the vegetables, and the corners of her lips were stained with a soft smile, “Is silly, upright, cute, and interesting. Without her, I wouldn’t be who I am now.” 1

Ye Kehuan’s hands became more stiff after listening. That description really sounded like…

Was this the legendary New Year’s Perfect Lover? Who was that? Was it someone in the entertainment industry? He got such a high evaluation. For a while, Ye Kehuan felt a little uncomfortable.

“Kehuan?” At that moment, Jiang Laien called her.

“Huh?” Ye Kehuan recovered.

“What’s wrong with you?” Jiang Laien asked.

Ye Kehuan coughed and turned the grouper in the pot: “It’s nothing, just thinking about why both you and my mother can’t tell the difference between grouper and tiger grouper…”

Jiang Laien lowered her head and continued to peel the eggplant: “Speaking of which, has she been okay in recent years?”

After listening, Ye Kehuan nodded: “Very good. She can eat, drink, sleep, run, and jump. She travels around the world all day long, and she can buy whatever she wants.”

Jiang Laien smiled: “That’s good, good health is the most important thing, otherwise, everything else is useless.”

“Yeah. Speaking of it, she still thinks about you, and always asks why I suddenly stopped playing with you.” Ye Kehuan blanched the ribs in the water, then shook the strainer again. “Like this, after the show was broadcast, she was so happy that she kept sending me messages asking when I would take you home for dinner.”

When Jiang Laien heard that, she closed her eyes and let out a long sigh of relief: “I’ll go when I have time.”

“Yeah,” Ye Kehuan nodded, looking at the blanched ribs, “Okay, it’s almost done, we can start the real cooking. Do you want to learn braised ribs?”

“Of course I want to learn.” Jiang Laien walked closer to Ye Kehuan as she spoke, and slightly pulled her two sleeves out, covering half of each of her hands, very cautious.

Ye Kehuan smiled happily: “Afraid of being splashed by oil?”

Jiang Laien turned her head: “A little bit.”

“Don’t worry,” Ye Kehuan said, pouring the oil into the pot, then put some sugar down, and then fried out the color, and said to Jiang Laien, “Take the ribs and pour them in.”

After listening, Jiang Laien immediately picked up the ribs and poured them into the pot! This downfall caused the pan to crackle and pop in an instant, which was scarier than the omelette. In an instant, Jiang Laien couldn’t help but take a step backwards, then her face discolored, as if she was about to slip.

“Be careful!” Upon seeing this, Ye Kehuan hurriedly stretched out her hand and pressed it behind her. As a result, her arm passed through her armpits inadvertently, and accidentally pressed on a certain inch of very soft skin. Even though there was a layer of clothing between them, Ye Kehuan’s figure froze. She could feel the seemingly nonexistent touch of that dove’s beak, and her whole body couldn’t help but tremble.

For a time, the atmosphere between the two of them became a little ambiguous. It was like a rainy night in the scorching summer.

She was a mess, and her mind was messed up. Looking at Jiang Laien’s lips, Ye Kehuan began to realize that something was really wrong with her…

The author has something to say: Hello everyone, do you know about my new short story, “Summer Fireworks”?

Copywriting:

When Yan Shuxin’s missing ex-girlfriend appeared in front of her, she only said one thing:

“I will never get together with you even if I die.”

Song Zhilin just heard it and said with a smile: “Me too.”

Later, Song Zhilin pressed her under her body again and again, leaving scarlet marks on her neck, like never-ending flames.

Just like that summer ten years ago, only this time, she won’t leave again.

TL/N

1 - Remember, no pronouns. Ye Kehuan thinks Jiang Laien is talking about a man.