Chapter 43 : Toxic girl talk

It was already close to 1 a.m.

February 14th, Valentine’s Day.

Jiang Nanshu finished washing her face in the bathroom,

looked at herself in the mirror, and felt that her eyes were still a bit red and swollen,

It was obvious she had been crying.

She applied a cold towel for a few more minutes, but it didn’t seem to help.

After a while, she sighed and thought hopelessly: Forget it, if it shows, then it shows.

She put on her down jacket, took her phone, and quietly slipped out the front door,

like sneaking out for a date behind her parents’ backs in the middle of the night, her heart filled with uncontrollable nervousness.

It was already very clear why Song Ye had come.

What else could he want?

What else could he do?

Jiang Nanshu stepped into the elevator,

staring at the countdown on the LED display, her nervousness rising with every passing floor.

Besides the nervousness, she also felt confused, stifled, wronged…

But she couldn’t deny also deeply moved.

The strongest feeling, though, was regret.

Especially after seeing the photos and videos of Song Ye over the years,

When he told her that she could have been part of his life much earlier

But because of a baseless accusation, she had been kept away for so many years.

Her emotions were a tangled mess,

And the moment she walked out of the elevator and saw the man leaning against the wall at the corner, everything changed.

Song Ye had changed his clothes.

He was no longer wearing the black windbreaker from when he delivered her laptop.

He must’ve gone home and even taken a shower; now he was wearing the same coat he had on when they reunited outside the airport.

He looked tall, handsome, and refined, dressed more formally than usual.

He turned his head slightly, his deep gaze falling on her.

Jiang Nanshu stood in front of the elevator, stunned as she looked at him,

then lowered her gaze to the cat carrier at his feet.

Rousong was sleeping inside, making soft purring sounds.

The cold wind howled through the night, and through the glass doors,

a few snowflakes seemed to swirl in the air.

Was it… snowing?

Jiang Nanshu blinked blankly.

Twenty minutes ago, when she looked downstairs from her apartment, there was no snow.

Following her gaze, Song Ye looked outside briefly,

then turned back to her with a casual tone and said, “It’s snowing.”

The snow came unexpectedly, perfectly timed.

As if to accompany tonight’s confession with a touch of romance.

After a few seconds of silence, Jiang Nanshu looked up at him again and asked,

already knowing the answer, “Why did you come?”

Song Ye had his hands in his pockets, eyes locked firmly on her, and said plainly and openly,

“To see if I can bring the princess home.”

As soon as Jiang Nanshu heard that, her nose tingled with emotion, and tears almost fell again.

That night of the New Year’s Eve party, when she came down from the stage,

the words he said to her stuck with her for a long time.

Sometimes when she was studying,

she’d space out and fantasize about what his confession would be like.

Would he say something straightforward like,

“I like you, be my girlfriend,” or something more subtle?

Would there be a gift?

He would probably give her a gift,

But what kind of gift?

During that time, she was studying hard for exams while also restlessly waiting for his confession.

That clip of him seemed etched into her mind, and now it began replaying uncontrollably,

every frame vivid and clear.

As it played to the end, the memory merged with the man in front of her,

forming a complete picture of Song Ye.

Even if it came years too late.

Even if she’d once two-timed him.

He still came before her and confessed.

His confession had already been embedded in the game,

but hearing it with her own ears still felt different.

Jiang Nanshu looked at Song Ye, her heart full of conflicting and sour emotions.

The creation of Echoes of Time was born from a misunderstanding,

even if the side quests had changed the ending, she still felt a bit wronged.

She couldn’t help but poke at him, so she sneered inwardly and began her “bad girl” speech:

“I don’t have much going for me, except maybe being a little fickle, and I have a history of two-timing.

If you don’t mind that, we can give it a try.”

As soon as she said it, she regretted it a little.

Would Song Ye just turn around and walk away?

Song Ye hadn’t expected her to say something like that either.

His expression darkened for a moment, and after a few seconds of silence,

he took a deep breath and said in a restrained yet calm voice: “Okay. Let’s try.”

“…Huh?”

Jiang Nanshu was stunned.

She was completely dumbfounded now, staring at him blankly.

He… agreed?

He’s not going to say anything else?

Behind them, the elevator suddenly dinged open, and a man’s voice rang out:

“It’s below zero out here,

What kind of photos are you trying to take in the middle of the night?

There’s barely any snow!”

“It’s snowing on Valentine’s Day, how rare is that?!

I asked you to come downstairs once, and you’re whining this much!”

Jiang Nanshu froze for a second when she heard the two voices.

Her body moved faster than her mind, and she dove straight into Song Ye’s arms,

burying her face in his chest.

Song Ye was startled for a moment and looked up,

just in time to make eye contact with the young couple who had stepped out of the elevator.

The couple clearly hadn’t expected to see anyone downstairs,

especially a tall, handsome guy,

and were momentarily stunned.

Song Ye casually looked away, pulled up the hood of Jiang Nanshu’s coat,

and gently covered her head, shielding her completely.

The couple looked at them for a few seconds,

then looked away and continued walking toward the door.

As the door opened, a blast of cold wind swept in.

The chill made her body shudder.

A moment later.

The couple’s voices could be vaguely heard.

“When did our building get a hot guy like that? A new tenant?”

“Didn’t you see he was holding a woman in his arms?

It’s Valentine’s Day, he’s obviously here to see his girlfriend!”

“Look at that,

in this freezing weather, he still comes to find his girlfriend.

I ask you to come downstairs for a couple of photos, and you complain non-stop! We just got married!”

“Okay, okay, my bad, my queen…”

…

Inside the building, the atmosphere was quiet.

Jiang Nanshu was nestled in Song Ye’s arms, catching a faint scent of his body wash,

a mix of light woody notes and a barely noticeable hint of tobacco.

Had he just smoked downstairs?

Song Ye had indeed smoked a cigarette,

During the time he waited downstairs, it was hard to stay calm,

And he was feeling extremely restless.

He looked down and asked her quietly, “Do you know those two?”

“They’re neighbors…”

A newlywed couple who had gotten their marriage license before the New Year,

Word was that their new apartment was still under renovation,

So they were temporarily living with the groom’s parents.

Lu Mingkun had been a longtime neighbor with the guy’s family, and they were close.

Jiang Nanshu had been staying here for over ten days,

had run into them a few times, and Jiang Yu had introduced them.

They’d chatted briefly, so technically,

yes, they knew each other.

She had thrown herself into his arms just now in a panic, afraid they’d see her.

Being held by him like this, Jiang Nanshu’s mind went a little blank.

All those tangled emotions had somehow faded away, leaving behind a deep and vague sense of loss.

Suddenly, she didn’t know what to say.

“Jiang Nanshu,” Song Ye called her name softly.

Jiang Nanshu gave a muffled “Mm.”

Rousong is nine years old this year. A cat’s lifespan is about twenty years.”

He said, his voice low, and rubbed the back of her head through her hood.

“I wanted to say this to you years ago: Be with me. Let’s raise a cat named Rousong together.”

He brushed past her earlier “bad girl” remark without giving it any weight.

Jiang Nanshu looked up at him.

The next second.

He gently pushed her head back down again.

Song Ye let out a sigh, his tone a bit helpless.

“Echoes of Time and Space was a project I started the winter I graduated from college.

I was still overseas at the time, and I heard that you and Chen…”

He paused, as if he didn’t even want to mention the name.

“I heard you broke up with him.”

Jiang Nanshu’s mind went “boom.”

She abruptly looked up, eyes wide. “Who told you that? Chen Qingyue?”

Song Ye lowered his gaze to her and gave a soft “Mm.”

“At the time… I thought maybe he was just trying to provoke me.

Or maybe things ended badly between you two.

I didn’t dare think too much about it.”

“The game came out the following winter.

At that time, there were still things I hadn’t worked through.

I hadn’t fully let go.

So I made the game ending open-ended.

I didn’t even know whether I should come back to find you or not.”

“Later on, I don’t even know when exactly… I started to regret it.”

“Regretted being too bound by my upbringing and morals back then.

Too proud, too stubborn.

I didn’t fight for you.

He wasn’t a good person.

You two weren’t a good match.”

He took a deep breath, not sure if it was to convince her or himself, and tried to keep his tone steady.

“Since I’ve already decided to pursue you again, this is something I’ve truly let go of.

No matter what happened before, as long as you’re with me now, I don’t think you’ll regret it.”

Jiang Nanshu’s voice trembled slightly.

“Did he… say anything else to you back then?”

“Forget it. It’s all in the past.”

Song Ye clearly didn’t want to talk about it anymore, especially not at a moment like this.

He looked at her reddened eyes and tugged the corner of his lips into a small smile.

“Do you want to come home with me?”

Jiang Nanshu looked down and bit her lip. Her mind was a chaotic mess.

If she told him now that she and Chen Qingyue never even got together…

Would it hit like a thunderclap?

Would he… go ballistic?

Song Ye saw her silent and looking down, pressed his lips together,

and lowered his head to murmur near her ear, “Jiang Nanshu, give me an answer.

Are you coming home with me or not?”

Jiang Nanshu sniffled, then raised her hand and started unbuttoning his shirt.

“…?”

Song Ye froze for a moment, looked down at her, and reminded her, “There are security cameras here.”

Jiang Nanshu acted like she didn’t hear him, insistently undoing two of his buttons.

He grabbed her hand, chuckled lazily.

“Even if we’re officially a couple now, shouldn’t some things be done behind closed doors?”

She looked up at him. “Seal it with a stamp.”

With that, she yanked open his collar, leaned in, and bit down hard on his neck.