Chapter 2: Did you lose your memory?

Anyone could come to pick her up, except for Song Ye this was what Jiang Nanshu thought before.

The two were classmates, sitting together as desk mates for nearly a year.

Anyone who knew them could see that she liked him.

Song Ye, being such a smart person, must have noticed as well.

He didn’t reject her increasingly forward behavior, and one could even say he indulged her.

So, Jiang Nanshu had always thought that Song Ye liked her too.

This illusion was completely shattered after the college entrance exam when she confessed to him and was rejected.

Unless there was an accident.

Song Ye would definitely never take the initiative to see her.

Therefore, she didn’t connect the high school classmate that Lu Youchuan mentioned to Song Ye.

Song Ye looked at her in a daze, as if completely unaware.

He furrowed his brow but didn’t explain.

He took her suitcase and turned to leave.

Jiang Nanshu stood there dumbfounded.

Only after his tall and slender figure walked far away did she snap back to reality.

…She suspected she was dreaming and pinched herself on the leg.

Ouch, that hurts!

Song Ye probably noticed she hadn’t caught up, so he stopped, turned around, and saw her strange movements.

The corner of his mouth seemed to curl up slightly.

“…”

At this moment, Jiang Nanshu really wanted to run away, but her suitcase had already been “robbed” by someone.

She stood in place, hesitating for a few seconds, then gritted her teeth and walked over.

After a few steps, she suddenly remembered that they were going to be alone in the cramped train compartment later and got scared again.

What should she say later?

She should go to a certain forum and ask for help urgent! My high school crush, who rejected me, suddenly comes to pick me up at the airport years later, what should I do?

She didn’t usually post, so she could only send a message to Cheng Jiajia.

shu: [Tell a ghost story, Song Ye came to pick me up at the airport…]

Isn’t that a ghost story?

Jiang Nanshu really couldn’t understand why Song Ye would come to pick her up.

Cheng Jiajia replied instantly.

Cheng Jiajia: [!!!!!!]

Cheng Jiajia: [You’re not mistaken, right? Is it really him?]

Cheng Jiajia: [You haven’t seen him for so many years, you didn’t mistake him, right? Or is this some kind of hallucination?]

Jiang Nanshu understood Cheng Jiajia’s shock and replied: [Do you think I could mistake him?]

Cheng Jiajia was sorting out a press release.

If it weren’t for her shock, she wouldn’t dare to slack off at this time.

She typed quickly: [When he rejected you back then, what did he say? Didn’t he tell you not to contact him again and that it’s better if you didn’t meet again? I’ve never seen anyone reject someone so coldly.

We were classmates for two years, and you even sat together for so long.

Even if he really didn’t like you, there was no need to cut all ties, right? Anyone would think you did something wrong to him.]

Cheng Jiajia: [It’s been so many years, why would he suddenly come to pick you up?]

Cheng Jiajia: [Could it be that he lost his memory?]

Jiang Nanshu actually didn’t want to recall the scene of being rejected back then.

Song Ye’s name was like a mark on a cliff, and her emotions were like the sea below, calm when the tide was out, but surging and crashing against her heart when the tide came in, swinging her emotions wildly.

Even after many years, thinking of the night she was rejected still brought that sour feeling, as if the tide had come in, surging right to the tip of her heart.

That year, after she didn’t do well in the math exam, she went to find Song Ye for comfort that very night.

She sat by a flower bed near her neighborhood, hugging her knees.

When she saw Song Ye walking towards her in the dim light, she stretched out her hand and pitifully asked, “Where’s my gift?”

He had promised to give her a gift after the exams when he found out she didn’t do well.

Song Ye looked down at her, his voice dry: “There isn’t one.”

“Ah…” Jiang Nanshu’s long-awaited hope fell flat.

Her shoulders slumped in disappointment, and then, suddenly, a cunning idea flashed in her mind.

She blinked mischievously, blushed, and looked up at him.

“No gift? Then, can you be my boyfriend?”

She thought he would agree.

But the boy just stared at her, silent.

Jiang Nanshu began to feel uneasy and carefully stood up, looking at him.

She finally saw the deep coldness in Song Ye’s eyes, and the complex emotions he was desperately trying to control.

The surrounding crowd and noise made her palm slowly turn cold as she nervously watched him.

“I don’t like you.”

Song Ye’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he spoke.

Jiang Nanshu didn’t understand.

The boy who had gently comforted her the night before the exam, telling her not to be nervous and to focus on the test, suddenly became so indifferent.

“I don’t like you” was enough to make her lose the courage to ask why.

She stared at him dumbfounded.

They locked eyes in silence for a while.

Song Ye’s expression gradually calmed, and he said quietly, “Go back.”

Jiang Nanshu turned away, red-eyed, and left in a daze.

“Jiang Nanshu.”

Behind her

Song Ye suddenly called her back.

Jiang Nanshu turned around blankly.

Their eyes met, and Song Ye calmly looked at her.

“Don’t contact me again.

It’s best if we don’t see each other again.”

Years passed, and indeed, they had not been in contact.

Except for an accidental meeting during their junior year in university, they hadn’t seen each other in six years.

Jiang Nanshu walked behind Song Ye in a daze.

When she snapped back to reality, they had already arrived in front of a black Mercedes-Benz.

Song Ye went to the back of the car and placed her suitcase in the trunk.

She stood by the car, staring at him in confusion.

The person who once said not to meet again had suddenly come to pick her up… Could it be, like Cheng Jiajia said, that he had lost his memory?

Bang

Song Ye closed the trunk and glanced at her indifferently.

“Get in.”

Jiang Nanshu bit her lip, hesitating whether to sit in the back seat or the front passenger seat.

Song Ye seemed to see through her thoughts and made the choice for her.

“Sit in the front.”

Jiang Nanshu nodded and opened the door.

Soon, Song Ye sat in the driver’s seat and closed the door.

The cramped car seemed to have its oxygen drained in an instant.

Jiang Nanshu quietly took a deep breath, unbuckled her seatbelt, and just then, her phone rang.

She took it out, and immediately felt speechless.

Lu Youchuan: [You should be familiar with Song Ye.]

“…”

Big brother, your message was quite delayed.

If she had known it was Song Ye picking her up, she would have rather stayed at the airport than come out.

Lu Youchuan wasn’t doing it on purpose.

He had already sent Jiang Nanshu a message in the car earlier, but the last message hadn’t been sent because he got interrupted by a call from a client.

After the call, he went straight to a meeting.

When he got back to the company, he had time to check his phone.

He meant to ask if Jiang Nanshu had arrived, but found out there was still an unsent message in the draft box.

He sent it, and then sent another one.

Lu Youchuan: [You’re off the plane, right? Have you seen him?]

Jiang Nanshu had a blank expression, not knowing how to respond.

Song Ye started the engine, turned on the heater, and placed his hand on the steering wheel without driving immediately.

He glanced at her indifferently as she stared at her phone with a face full of regret.

He asked flatly, “Address.”

Jiang Nanshu instinctively pressed the screen off, thought for a moment, and then remembered the name of the neighborhood.

“Senhe Community.”

Song Ye knew the way, but it was rush hour.

He connected the Bluetooth and turned on the navigation to avoid congested routes.

He entered the destination on the navigation.

Jiang Nanshu quietly turned her head to look at him.

The car’s interior was dim, and the streetlights from the windshield cast shadows that clearly reflected the man’s handsome, indifferent side profile.

Since she first recognized him, she hadn’t dared to look him in the eye, and her heart was in a mess.

Perhaps influenced by his calmness and indifference, she had become much calmer now.

“You…”

Looking at the man’s calm side profile, she finally couldn’t help but ask, “Did you lose your memory?”

Song Ye paused for a moment, but his expression didn’t change.

He didn’t even turn his head to look at her.

He placed his hand on the steering wheel.

“No.”

“Then…”

“I’m university alumni with Lu Youchuan. I owe him a favor, and he asked me to help.”

Song Ye interrupted her words, explaining all her confusion in just a few sentences.

Jiang Nanshu didn’t dare to ask what kind of favor he owed, so she just said a dry “oh.”

Song Ye didn’t speak anymore and drove the car out.

The atmosphere fell into silence.

Jiang Nanshu lowered her head and silently texted Lu Youchuan.

Suddenly, her phone rang.

She instinctively looked up, and the screen displayed the name “Lu Youchuan.”

She turned her head to look at Song Ye.

Song Ye reached out and swiped to answer the call.

“Did you pick up my little sister?” Lu Youchuan’s voice was a little tired.

“I sent her a message but haven’t received a reply.”

Jiang Nanshu: “…”

Song Ye paused for a moment.

“She’s in the car.”

Jiang Nanshu sat up straight, smiled, and called out, “Brother.”

On the other end of the call, Lu Youchuan paused and awkwardly cleared his throat.

“Good, as long as you got her.

That… sister, you go home first. I won’t make it home for dinner tonight.”

Jiang Nanshu understood.

“Okay, I’ll explain to uncle and mom.”

“Alright, alright…”

Lu Youchuan wanted to say something more but hadn’t figured out how to phrase it.

Song Ye casually said, “Hang up.”

After hanging up, the atmosphere fell into silence again.

The only sound in the car was the cold mechanical voice of the navigation.

Jiang Nanshu felt very awkward.

When people are awkward, they tend to pretend to be busy.

She lowered her head and texted Jiang Yu, telling her that she had arrived and was on her way home.

Cheng Jiajia hadn’t replied yet, probably too busy to respond.

shu: [I asked, Song Ye didn’t lose his memory.]

If he didn’t lose his memory, then it’s even more awkward…

Jiang Nanshu tried her best to ignore Song Ye’s presence and continued to text Cheng Jiajia, pretending to be busy.

After a long silence, she caught a glimpse of the man’s long fingers tapping on the screen.

The car’s radio music started playing.

She felt a sense of balance in her heart and thought: You couldn’t stand the awkward atmosphere either, huh?

The night sky was filled with neon lights, and the scenery felt familiar.

Looking at the city lights outside, she suddenly felt a sense of belonging.

“How long are you staying this time?”

The man suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.

Jiang Nanshu was taken aback, not expecting him to ask this.

Remembering what he had said before, she hesitated for a few seconds before replying, “I quit my job and plan to work in Jiangcheng.”

Song Ye casually glanced ahead and asked again, “Is the company settled?”

“Not yet.”

Jiang Nanshu paused, then asked, “What about you? Are you in Jiangcheng for business?”

She had heard that he had been an exchange student abroad during university, and after not graduating, he joined a globally renowned gaming company.

He had stayed abroad for a few years and only returned to the domestic branch two years ago.

Cheng Jiajia had learned these details after attending a reunion.

She hadn’t mentioned everything, and naturally, Jiang Nanshu didn’t dare to ask too much.

She thought he had come back this time for business or something else.

Song Ye’s tone was calm.

“I came back a few months earlier than you. I’m working in Jiangcheng now.”

“Ah?”

Jiang Nanshu turned to look at him in surprise and couldn’t help but ask, “You… came back to start a business?”

She simply thought that Song Ye wouldn’t keep working for others.

“Sort of.”

What does “sort of” mean?

Is he afraid that she’ll ask about the company address or something?

Song Ye seemed not to want to say much, so Jiang Nanshu didn’t ask any further.

This time, they fell into silence again.

The traffic was still heavy due to rush hour, and Jiang Nanshu gradually became anxious.

She kept glancing at the navigation screen to check the traffic conditions.

Fortunately, after they passed the congested section, the road conditions improved significantly.

Song Ye turned off the navigation, and only the radio music played in the car.

The car turned into an intersection, and Jiang Nanshu saw the entrance to her neighborhood, finally letting out a sigh of relief.

“Just stop at the entrance.”

“Your luggage is heavy.”

Song Ye reminded her, “I can drive in.”

Jiang Nanshu explained, “They don’t live far.

I can walk in.”

Song Ye didn’t say anything further and parked the car at the entrance of the neighborhood.

She unbuckled her seatbelt, turned to smile at him, and said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Song Ye’s gaze swept over the faint dimples at the corners of her mouth.

He unbuckled his seatbelt, got out of the car, and took the two heavy suitcases from the trunk.

The cold wind was biting, and as soon as Jiang Nanshu got out of the car, she felt like shrinking back into the car.

She pulled up the hood of her down jacket to shield herself from the wind, walked around to the back of the car, and took the suitcase.

She thanked him again.

Normally, when old classmates meet, at least they would say “next time” or “add me on WeChat,” but they weren’t just any old classmates.

She had thought about a lot of things in the car earlier and felt that some things were better said in advance.

“You’re quite familiar with Lu Youchuan, right?”

Since they were in the same city, and with the same circle of acquaintances, they would inevitably run into each other in the future.

“We’re pretty familiar.”

Song Ye put his hand in his pocket and lowered his eyes to look at her.

“What I mean is, since we’re both in Jiangcheng, we’ll inevitably bump into each other sometimes.”

Jiang Nanshu hesitated for a moment, finding it hard to say, “You said before…”

She only said half the sentence, but Song Ye immediately understood.

He looked down at her.

Under the yellow streetlight, the girl was looking up at him.

At first glance, apart from the more mature aura, she didn’t change much compared to high school.

The white fox fur on the hood of her down jacket made her face look even smaller.

Her eyes, clear and lively, were the same as they had been.

“Jiangcheng is your home.

If you want to come back, then come back.”

Song Ye’s gaze was complicated as he looked at her, almost self-deprecating.

“One angry word, and I didn’t expect you’d remember it for so many years.”

“…”

What angry word?

Was it really an angry word??

I just confessed, you didn’t like me, and that was that.

Why are you angry now?

Jiang Nanshu had a belly full of complaints but couldn’t say a word.

She never considered coming back to Jiangcheng after graduation and avoided reunions almost entirely, just to avoid him.

“No… I just wanted to try my luck outside after graduation.”

She took the suitcase and smiled at him again.

“Thank you today. Hope we meet again sometime.”

The smile on her face seemed so innocent.

Was it because she was carefree, or was it an act?

Song Ye nodded coldly and turned to get in the car.