At the supermarket, Yan Cheng called Chen Jinyao. Although he was fully in charge of buying ingredients this time, truthfully, when he first saw the dazzling array of fruits, vegetables, and meats, Yan Cheng was stunned for two seconds. He stopped in his tracks and pressed his lips together, not knowing what to buy.
“…” This indeed wasn’t the young master’s strong suit. In fact, his confused stance standing there seemed completely out of place with his surroundings.
Chen Jinyao could imagine the man furrowing his brows in thought right now. She curved her eyes, expression gentle: “I want to make corn and pork rib soup, to nourish you.”
Yan Cheng immediately became expressionless: “????”
“Also buy some eggs, we’re out of eggs, and pick up a few tomatoes. For the rest, just buy whatever you want to eat.”
The man frowned, breathing shallow. After a while, he gave a low “Oh.”
When he looked up again, the bright colors before him assaulted his visual senses. He pressed his tongue against his teeth, falling into choice paralysis – he wasn’t hungry now and didn’t know what he wanted to eat.
At this point, Chen Jinyao earnestly expressed her concern: “Just buy what we need for tonight’s dinner. I’ll go buy stock ingredients myself tomorrow.” Then, suddenly lowering her voice, “I’m worried you’ll buy things that aren’t fresh.”
Yan Cheng dropped his eyes lazily: “…tch.”
The man usually bought things quickly and decisively.
After buying what was needed and taking a casual stroll around, he finished directly.
Stores all have fixed marketing strategies. For supermarkets, the most common is product promotions, with red and yellow labels visible everywhere on promotional items.
After shopping at supermarkets with Chen Jinyao multiple times, Yan Cheng had been influenced by her to some extent, admirably maintaining an occasional frugal attitude, unconsciously focusing his attention on promotional products, and after looking long enough, finding patterns.
While queuing to pay, Yan Cheng looked at the small boxes with buy-two-get-one-free offers, emotion flickering in his eyes. His fingers resting on the shopping cart lifted slightly, tapping twice.
When it was his turn to pay, placing all his purchases on the counter, he lazily narrowed his eyes and casually asked: “Why are all today’s discounted items paired things?”
Couple toothbrush cups, couple slippers, couple pillows, and so on…
Hearing this, the cashier finally spared him a glance, but that one look was enough to fill her eyes with admiration. However, professional ethics made her contain herself, only saying: “It’s almost May 20th.”
“May 20th?” It’s not any special day?
Seeing the man’s confused expression, the cashier silently concluded in her heart that this was a single handsome guy. But the next second, her eyes dropped and saw the wedding ring on his ring finger: “…”
The one who had initially marveled at fate instantly changed sides, her expression complicated: Goodness, how could a man who doesn’t even know about May 20th have a wife?
The cashier pressed her lips together, feeling somewhat sorry for this ignorant man’s other half: “The numbers sound like ‘I love you’ in Chinese. It’s considered a day for couples to show their love.”
After speaking, she paused for two seconds before slowly calculating: “The total is 168.50, do you need plastic bags? If so, add another 0.30.”
Yan Cheng nodded slightly: “Yes.”
Thus, he finally understood and intentionally made a mental note.
Using numbers to define holidays was truly profound.
On the way home, a slanting ray of sunlight shot through the windshield.
As they happened to hit a red light, the car stopped steadily at the crosswalk. Yan Cheng gripped the steering wheel, his long, fair fingers lifting slightly. His eyes casually swept the roadside and caught sight of a flower shop. This wasn’t the city’s main road; this street had various small shops, each following an artistic style.
Turning from this street would actually lead them to their apartment building.
Yan Cheng stared at the flower shop for a while, slightly frowning as if thinking about something. When the red light started flashing its countdown, he slowly withdrew his gaze.
The green light came on, and he drove through the intersection, then turned on his signal light. Upon reaching the spot, he stopped in front of the flower shop. Just as he was about to unbuckle his seatbelt, his hand paused. The cashier’s words had seemingly enlightened him – he was a clever one. The simple meaning behind this date made him instantly able to extrapolate: compared to suddenly bringing home flowers now, it would obviously be more sincere and romantic to do so on May 20th.
So, Yan Cheng only stopped in front of the flower shop for less than a minute before checking his rearview mirror, turning on his signal, and driving away.
The flower shop owner who had been waiting at the door hoping for business: “????”
Time flew by and May 20th arrived, falling on a Monday.
Many couples had celebrated in advance yesterday, holding onto their photos to post on social media today – who made today a cursed workday?
Early morning, just as Chen Jinyao opened her eyes, she was met with a long, deep kiss from Yan Cheng, who held the back of her head with his large palm.
After it ended, both were breathing heavily, while Chen Jinyao wore a questioning expression: this sudden move almost threw out her slim waist. She glared at him: “What are you doing?”
Yan Cheng showed his bright white teeth, grinning from ear to ear, and instead of directly answering her question, he said very cheesily: “Good morning, wife.”
This was poles apart from his usual self who had some morning grumpiness.
It was as if his soul had been switched.
“…” Chen Jinyao shuddered three times, unconsciously wrapping the blanket tighter around herself. After two seconds of silence in her ‘defensive’ state, she sincerely suggested: “Act normal.”
“Today is a day with special meaning,” he said.
However, Chen Jinyao didn’t understand either, or perhaps her mind was still foggy from just waking up and couldn’t remember anything: “????”
After an awkward staring standoff.
Yan Cheng didn’t explain further, leaving it at that. He moved his lips and started talking nonsense seriously: “This is a way to enhance our relationship.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he showed a satisfied expression.
“…” How shameless!!!
Then, Chen Jinyao looked away and, as if possessed, retorted in a strange tone that didn’t quite sound like sarcasm yet felt sarcastic: “Hmph, why don’t you suggest morning exercise to enhance our relationship.”
After saying it, she belatedly realized that the content wasn’t actually sarcastic at all, but rather led to different interpretations depending on the listener’s mindset, and the perverted would see perversion.
After they stared at each other, Yan Cheng’s eyes lit up, and then, his magnetic voice became lively: “Oh, that seems possible.”
After many days.
Su Ran finally decided to get her teeth corrected.
She contacted Chen Jinyao on WeChat in the morning.
When Chen Jinyao first saw her message, she was slightly startled, her heart unavoidably rippling with emotion, but it passed quickly, and then she completely let go.
Unnecessary worry should be avoided; she shouldn’t be caught up in it.
In fact, later Chen Jinyao had carefully thought about it, and after systematic analysis, she thought that the reason why the “her” in the book and Yan Cheng didn’t end up together might largely be due to her original self.
Su Ran: [I’ve decided to get braces, when is Doctor Chen available?]
Chen Jinyao lowered her eyelashes, the phrases “no time like the present” and “better a short pain than a long one” quickly flashing through her mind.
“…” She rested her chin on her hand, her thoughts turning over and over, but the one clear thing was that the sooner she got her braces, the sooner they wouldn’t need to interact anymore.
Her cool fingertips hovered over the screen, paused, then typed.
Chen Jinyao: [If you’re free, how about this afternoon.]
Su Ran: [Okay.]
Chen Jinyao: [Come at 2 PM.]
Su Ran: [Mm, okay.]
Su Ran: [What about the fee?]
Chen Jinyao: [We accept WeChat payments.]
However, in the afternoon, Su Ran came early.
Because she had a simulation sandbox practical class around 4 PM.
It was a class where attendance was taken, impossible to skip.
When she pushed open the door at 12:45, it was exactly lunch break time at the clinic. Seeing Little Liu at the front desk, Su Ran felt momentarily embarrassed, but remembering what her roommate said about private clinics being more flexible, she bit her lip and still mustered the courage to make her request.
Little Liu: “Please have a seat, I’ll ask Doctor Chen.”
“Okay.”
Chen Jinyao had just laid down for a short rest, and sighed helplessly.
…In the treatment room.
Chen Jinyao stood beside the dental chair, wearing a light blue disposable medical mask, slightly bent over, eyes lowered, her expression composed, serious and meticulous. There was a bit of fine sweat on her forehead, and the strong examination light shone on her half-profile, though the light was mainly focused on Su Ran lying in the dental chair.
“Relax, almost done,” she softly reassured Su Ran.
Half an hour later.
Chen Jinyao led Su Ran to her office, “Now it’s the fixing process, the wire will slowly correct your teeth. It might be a bit painful during the process, and if it becomes loose, remember to come back to see me.”
“When your teeth are mostly straight, we’ll switch to braces. As for other precautions, I’ve already mentioned them in the treatment room.”
Su Ran nodded.
Chen Jinyao: “Wait a moment, I’ll write up a receipt.”
It was already 3 PM now, and after getting through the drowsy afternoon period, Chen Jinyao was now energetic, though her body was somewhat tired. She tilted her neck and pressed it with her hand, then stretched, before pulling out her office chair to sit down. Her eyes casually swept over and saw her phone that she had left on the desk. She picked it up to unlock it, narrowed her eyes, and found several messages on WeChat.
“Just a moment, please.”
Su Ran: “Mm, okay.”
Almost all were from Yan Cheng, and they were very straightforward.
Chen Jinyao scrolled up to the first message.
The time shown was 13:14.
Yan Cheng had sent her thirteen transfers, each for 520 yuan, and fourteen red packets. Chen Jinyao opened one, and it seemed red packets had no limit today, so each was also 520 yuan.
“…” Chen Jinyao was surprised, and at the same time understood what good day Yan Cheng had meant this morning. She curved her lips in a smile.
Then she temporarily set aside her phone and wrote out the receipt to give to Su Ran.
“Then I’ll be going, Doctor Chen?”
“Okay.” She nodded absent-mindedly.
Chen Jinyao confirmed each payment one by one.
Then, she curved her lips and happily sent a string of “hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha”.
Chen Jinyao: [Who taught you this?]
Chen Jinyao: [Tomorrow is 521, you can continue.]
Meanwhile, Su Ran, leaving the clinic, met face to face with the Er Guan owner whom she had seen a few times before, now walking elegantly towards the clinic.
As they were about to pass each other, she unconsciously looked him up and down, then twitched her mouth corner and lowered her head, quickening her pace to leave rapidly.
To be honest, she almost didn’t recognize him at first glance.
Because…
Yan Cheng was currently wearing sunglasses and carrying himself with an extremely showy attitude, holding a large bouquet of red roses, with a smile on his face that looked quite flirtatious, just like a peacock showing off its feathers.
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