Chapter 41 : Echoes of Time and Space (1/3)

Song Ye was momentarily stunned.

Just a second ago, he had been convincing himself that they might only run into each other by chance, and that he shouldn’t care too much about it.

But he hadn’t expected Jiang Nanshu to suddenly hug him,

right in front of Chen Qingyue, and at a time when the tension between the two of them was still high.

Chen Qingyue stared blankly at the scene.

After a while, she turned her head away, looking desolate.

At that moment, Jiang Nanshu’s mind was a mess.

She had almost forgotten that she had just been angry with Song Ye earlier.

hugging him was a completely instinctive act, done without much thought.

Even the words “You’re so slow” came out subconsciously, revealing the grievance and resentment buried deep in her heart.

You’re so slow.

If you liked me, why didn’t you come find me sooner?

Song Ye was only stunned for a few seconds before lifting his hand to rest on her back,

pulling her into his arms.

Actually, whenever he thought of Chen Qingyue,

there was still a stabbing pain in his heart, especially since she was standing right behind him.

But now, holding Jiang Nanshu in his arms, all that pain,

unwillingness, and even hatred could be ignored.

He just wanted to be with Jiang Nanshu, to fall in love and get married.

No one knew when Chen Qingyue had left.

They only heard the car door close, the engine start,

and the ground subtly tremble as a car silently passed by them.

A few withered leaves were swept up by the cold wind, spinning before gently landing again.

Under the dim streetlight, the cold wind howled.

Jiang Nanshu’s cheek was pressed against his chest, hearing the man’s strong and rapid heartbeat.

It vibrated in her ears and made her heart ache slightly.

The ringtone of a phone suddenly rang out, breaking the silence.

She came back to her senses, took a deep breath, and struggled out of Song Ye’s arms,

stepping back a little as she pulled out the phone from her pocket.

It was a call from Jiang Yu.

Once the call connected, Jiang Yu asked,

“Did you finish the injection?

We’re on our way back now.

Your brother said someone came to pick you up.

who is it?”

Jiang Nanshu lowered her head slightly and replied, “Just… my boss.”

“Oh… your crush, huh? That’s great.”

Jiang Yu sounded pleased and smiled warmly.

“Then let him bring you back.

We won’t come get you.”

“Okay.”

Just as the words left her lips, her hand was held.

The man’s hand was long and broad, dry and warm, pulling her toward the car.

Jiang Nanshu glanced up at him.

On the phone, Jiang Yu reminded her,

“It’s the first day of the New Year, most shops are probably closed.

You need to watch what you eat.

if there’s nothing suitable, just come home. Mom will cook for you.”

“Mm-hmm,” Jiang Nanshu responded and hung up the call.

Song Ye was momentarily stunned.

Just a second ago, he had been convincing himself that they might only run into each other by chance,

and that he shouldn’t care too much about it.

But he hadn’t expected Jiang Nanshu to suddenly hug him,

right in front of Chen Qingyue, and at a time when the tension between the two of them was still high.

Chen Qingyue stared blankly at the scene.

After a while, she turned her head away, looking desolate.

At that moment, Jiang Nanshu’s mind was a mess.

She had almost forgotten that she had just been angry with Song Ye earlier,

Hugging him was a completely instinctive act, done without much thought.

Even the words “You’re so slow” came out subconsciously,

revealing the grievance and resentment buried deep in her heart.

You’re so slow.

If you liked me, why didn’t you come find me sooner?

Song Ye was only stunned for a few seconds before lifting his hand to rest on her back, pulling her into his arms.

Actually, whenever he thought of Chen Qingyue, there was still a stabbing pain in his heart,

especially since she was standing right behind him.

But now, holding Jiang Nanshu in his arms,

all that pain, unwillingness, and even hatred could be ignored.

He just wanted to be with Jiang Nanshu, to fall in love and get married.

No one knew when Chen Qingyue had left.

They only heard the car door close, the engine start,

and the ground subtly tremble as a car silently passed by them.

A few withered leaves were swept up by the cold wind,

spinning before gently landing again.

Under the dim streetlight, the cold wind howled.

Jiang Nanshu’s cheek was pressed against his chest,

hearing the man’s strong and rapid heartbeat.

It vibrated in her ears and made her heart ache slightly.

The ringtone of a phone suddenly rang out, breaking the silence.

She came back to her senses, took a deep breath,

and struggled out of Song Ye’s arms,

stepping back a little as she pulled out the phone from her pocket.

It was a call from Jiang Yu.

Once the call connected, Jiang Yu asked,

“Did you finish the injection?

We’re on our way back now.

Your brother said someone came to pick you up.

Who is it?”

Jiang Nanshu lowered her head slightly and replied,

“Just… my boss.”

“Oh… your crush, huh? That’s great.

” Jiang Yu sounded pleased and smiled warmly.

“Then let him bring you back.

We won’t come get you.”

“Okay.”

Just as the words left her lips, her hand was held.

The man’s hand was long and broad, dry and warm, pulling her toward the car.

Jiang Nanshu glanced up at him.

On the phone, Jiang Yu reminded her,

“It’s the first day of the New Year, most shops are probably closed.

You need to watch what you eat.

if there’s nothing suitable, just come home.

Mom will cook for you.”

“Mm-hmm,” Jiang Nanshu responded and hung up the call.

Song Ye pulled open the car door and shoved her into the passenger seat,

then walked around the front of the car and got into the driver’s seat.

He turned on the heater and looked over at her.

“Are you hungry?”

“I’m not hungry…”

Jiang Nanshu didn’t really have an appetite.

she didn’t even feel hungry.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a thermos,

which contained a warming herbal tea Jiang Yu had made for her.

The thermos had a straw.

She lowered her head and took a sip of the hot tea, then turned to him and asked,

“You said you just got off the highway.

where were you coming from?”

“My grandma’s place on my mom’s side,”

Song Ye leaned back in his seat and turned to look at her.

“Even if you’re not hungry, you should still eat something. What do you want to eat?”

Jiang Nanshu remembered that his grandmother lived in a neighboring city,

and driving back took two or three hours.

She was silent for a few seconds and looked at him.

“Don’t you have anything to ask me?”

He’d just seen her run into Chen Qingyue,

didn’t he want to ask about it?

“What do you want me to ask?

Why you and Chen Qingyue ran into each other?”

Song Ye looked at her calmly.

“You want me to bring up the past again?”

Jiang Nanshu: “…”

She turned to glare at him and noticed that his expression was calm, not angry, and not in some restrained and brooding way either.

Could it really be that just because she hugged him in front of Chen Qingyue, all his years of grievance and resentment were gone?

He had figured it out.

But she hadn’t; her own frustration and bitterness were still there.

Jiang Nanshu felt that it was infuriating for Chen Qingyue to spread rumors about them being together and deceive Song Ye.

But Song Ye didn’t even come to ask her about it.

he just passed judgment, and that hurt just as much.

She took a deep breath, slipped back into her scumbag persona, and sneered, “Right, you probably think I just happened to bump into my ex.”

He seemed to clench his jaw slightly, turned to look at her,

his face a little cold, but his tone was steady.

“You were planning to get back together with him, and I’m still going to pursue you.”

“…”

So… he really regretted not fighting for her back then?

Jiang Nanshu’s heart started beating faster,

and she stared at him in a daze, a little pained.

She blinked and turned to look out the window, realizing she couldn’t stay calm,

she was still angry.

After a moment, she snorted, “Then why did you reject me back then?”

“That’s why I’m pursuing you now.

You don’t have to give me an answer so soon.”

Song Ye’s hand tightened slightly on the steering wheel.

He took a deep breath and looked at her. “Being with me would be better than being with anyone else. Jiang Nanshu, your taste in the past… really wasn’t great.”

“…”

Chen Qingyue really wasn’t great.

Jiang Nanshu couldn’t help but turn to look at him.

After saying all that, Song Ye gave a lazy smile, his deep gaze meeting hers.

“I don’t believe you really don’t like me.”

“I should’ve hugged you. I should’ve bitten you.”

Song Ye paused, then raised his right hand and unbuttoned two buttons on his shirt,

revealing a clean, defined Adam’s apple.

Jiang Nanshu looked at him in confusion.

why was he suddenly unbuttoning his shirt?

Was the heater too warm?

The man undid the buttons, his slender fingers hooking his collar down and tugging it,

leaning toward her.

The veins on his neck stood out slightly.

He tapped them twice gently.

“…”

What is this?

Did he really want her to bite him?

With that cold, restrained face, the way he pulled down his collar invitingly was dangerously tempting.

Jiang Nanshu stared at the clean, smooth lines of his neck and suddenly felt parched.

She reached out, grabbed his sleeve, and pulled him closer.

She leaned toward his neck, her warm breath brushing his skin.

Song Ye’s neck instantly tensed, the veins standing out more,

and his sharp Adam’s apple bobbed involuntarily.

Jiang Nanshu noticed, her eyelashes were trembling slightly.

She swallowed, suppressing the impulse, then suddenly released him and leaned back in her seat.

“Forget it. Biting you means I’ll have to take responsibility.”

Was she doing this on purpose?

Song Ye’s throat felt unbearably dry.

He casually let go of his collar and placed a hand on the steering wheel.

The air was filled with an ambiguous tension.

Neither of them spoke, Jiang Nanshu staring silently out the window.

After a while, Song Ye seemed to chuckle.

“Let’s go get something to eat.

Anything you feel like having?”

“No…” Jiang Nanshu really didn’t have an appetite.

If she had to name something, maybe she wanted some dim sum from Chen Ji’s Hong Kong-style café.

But it was the first day of the New Year likely nothing would be open.

“Take me home. I’m a bit tired.”

Song Ye had driven three hours to get back, and they had only been together for a short half hour.

He turned to look at her.

“Want to come back to our place tonight?”

Jiang Nanshu paused, then quietly said,

“I’m going to my mom’s.”

Song Ye didn’t say anything more.

He pulled the car onto the road and drove her back to the Senhe complex.

Jiang Nanshu took out her phone and started searching on various platforms:

“How to act like a scumbag in front of your crush?”

The search results were all over the place

Scumbag Training Manual.

Lines that drive men crazy from a professional scumbag.

If you can act, men will fall hard.

Learn to be a ‘bad girl’—hook a man like a cat.
…
“…”

Jiang Nanshu scrolled for a while, felt it was useless, and got tired of reading.

Halfway through the drive, while waiting at a red light,’

Song Ye glanced at the passenger seat and saw Jiang Nanshu’s head tilted slightly, asleep against the seat.

Jiang Nanshu didn’t know how long she had slept.

When she opened her eyes,

she was still a bit dazed.

She heard the soft sound of a keyboard nearby and turned her head on instinct.

Song Ye had moved the driver’s seat back as far as it could go, a laptop resting on his lap.

The dim light from the screen highlighted his handsome profile.

His gaze was focused on the screen,

and his long fingers tapped on the keyboard from time to time.

She curiously leaned over for a look and saw that he was running code.

Song Ye turned his head. “Awake?”

“What’s that?”

Song Ye knew she wouldn’t understand the code, so he casually made something up.

“A test.”

Jiang Nanshu didn’t press for details, just turned to look outside.

The scenery looked familiar,it was right below the Senhe complex.

She glanced at the time and realized it was already ten o’clock.

Had she slept for over an hour?

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You were sleeping so soundly. I couldn’t bring myself to.”

Song Ye leaned back lazily in his seat, eyes calm as he looked at her.

“Besides, it gave me a little more time with you.”

Jiang Nanshu looked at him and remembered his earlier confession.

Her heart couldn’t help but race.

Even though she was still mad, she couldn’t stop herself from feeling something for him.

She sighed inwardly, then remembered he hadn’t eaten either.

She asked, “Are you hungry?”

“A little.”

Jiang Nanshu blinked and placed a hand on the car door handle.

“Then I’ll go up. You should get something to eat too.”

Song Ye gave a soft “Mm” and unlocked the doors.

Jiang Nanshu got out, took a few steps, then rummaged through her bag.

Suddenly, she turned back and knocked on the driver’s side window.

Song Ye lowered the window and looked up at her.