Jiang Jingyu put on a nonchalant air, “So what if it’s not proper? Am I not allowed to say what’s unsuitable?”
At this point, a taxi approached. Lu Jiaying shot him a glare, flagged it down, and urged him to get in.
“Don’t go to the company. Go home.”
Seeing that she wasn’t getting in, Jiang Jingyu also stood still.
“Aren’t you coming with me?”
“Why would I go home with you?”
“I’m not going home. I’m at work, so how can I explain to my mommy if I go back smelling of alcohol?”
Lu Jiaying reconsidered. It was true.
Would Jiang Nan Fang have an issue with him drinking during work hours?
“Then why don’t you get a room yourself?”
Jiang Jingyu scoffed, “I didn’t bring my ID. Can you get me one?”
Lu Jiaying hadn’t brought hers either.
Who carried their ID around unnecessarily?
“Then go hang out with your friends. Don’t you have many?”
“I’m broke. Besides, my friends are all in school.”
What? None of these worked?
Lu Jiaying was getting annoyed. “So what do you want?”
Jiang Jingyu chuckled.
“Your place is empty, isn’t it? Why don’t I just stay at your place for a while?”
“Dream on,” Lu Jiaying refused outright.
As they were talking, the driver grew impatient and poked his head out.
“Are you two going or not? Is this endless? Why don’t you just get in together!”
Jiang Jingyu pulled open the car door and pushed Lu Jiaying inside.
“Besides your place, I really have nowhere else to go. Just let me stay for a bit. Come on, come on. It’s not good to delay the driver’s earnings.”
Lu Jiaying, considering that he truly had nowhere else to go, reluctantly got into the car. She told the driver the address and warned him.
“Go back and sleep properly. Don’t touch my things. I have company matters to attend to and need to get back to work.”
Jiang Jingyu closed his eyes, not responding, unsure if he’d heard her.
The journey was uneventful. Arriving at the doorstep, Lu Jiaying unlocked the door and let him in, while she stood at the entrance.
“You can go in. I’m leaving.”
“Leaving already?”
“What else? Haven’t I wasted enough of your time?”
With that, she turned to leave, but Jiang Jingyu grabbed her wrist.
With a sudden, strong pull, he drew her into the house, kicked the door shut with his foot, and abruptly pulled Lu Jiaying into his arms.
Perhaps it was alcohol-fueled courage, but he desperately wanted to hold her, and finally, he did.
He held Lu Jiaying tightly in his embrace, inhaling the faint scent of her hair, feeling an infinite sense of satisfaction.
“Can’t you stay with me a little longer?”
Lu Jiaying’s heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would leap out of her throat.
If the previous time was much more dramatic, it was unintentional.
Now, it was deliberate, and in broad daylight. How could she not be nervous?
She tried to break free, but the disparity in strength between men and women was too great. Jiang Jingyu was also much taller than her, rendering her completely unable to move.
She looked up, intending to order Jiang Jingyu to let her go.
Jiang Jingyu, looking at her flushed face, her sparkling eyes, and her cute cherry lips, not only did not release her, but he reached out, cupped her chin, and lowered his head, about to touch her lips.
Fortunately, Lu Jiaying dodged.
His lips landed on the side of her face.
They were as if performing a cheek kiss, skin against skin. Lu Jiaying felt at least ten degrees hotter than him.
“Jiang Jingyu, are you crazy? If you can’t drink, don’t drink. Stop acting crazy with me! It’s daytime, what are you trying to do?”
She dodged, but Jiang Jingyu didn’t get angry.
He had fantasized about this scene many times in the past few days. To have it fulfilled now, to feel her presence, he was already content.
“I’m not acting crazy. This amount of alcohol won’t do that to me. It’s daytime, so I can’t do anything, you mean? Unless it’s at night that I can stay?”
“You! Stop talking nonsense!”
Lu Jiaying could only move her mouth. Hearing his words, she was so angry she wanted to bite him.
“Let me go. If you continue to be unreasonable, I’ll get angry!”
Jiang Jingyu didn’t let go, but he moved slightly away from her.
Their eyes met. He looked at her intently.
“Lu Jiaying, I want to ask you a serious question…”
“I refuse to answer!”
“No, if you don’t answer, I won’t let you leave today.”
Lu Jiaying realized then that being willful was a common trait among spoiled young masters.
He was exactly like Lu Kai. When he lost his temper, he disregarded consequences.
“Can’t you be more mature? What exactly do you want?”
Jiang Jingyu held her tightly, finally asking the question he had thought about countless times in his heart over the past few days.
“Have you never thought about giving us a try? Can’t we try? You were willing to try with Lu Kai, but not with me?”
Lu Jiaying was so shocked by his words that her hair stood on end.
Not to mention the age and generational gap, he was Zhan Bei Jue’s son, a true son of heaven.
What was she?
He still had many experiences and people to meet in the future, and he naively thought that coming to her was the end point?
Lu Jiaying, understanding his young age and lack of experience, could attribute these childish and cute words to that.
She couldn’t take him seriously.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Do you have any idea how big the gap between us is?”
Jiang Jingyu was not joking at all; his face was serious.
“Besides the fact that you are a few years older than me, what other gap is there?”
“I understand what you’re thinking. It’s all about status and wealth, right? What era is this? Who still cares about that?”
“Besides, my parents like you. They aren’t old-fashioned and wouldn’t care about these things.”
“I believe the only issue between us is that I’m not old enough yet to promise you a stable future.”
“But I will try my best to restrain myself. I will strictly follow the standards of those around me, and try not to go astray. You just need to wait for me for a few years. We can get married right after graduation.”
The more he spoke, the more outrageous it became. He had the nerve to say it, and Lu Jiaying felt embarrassed to listen.
“You still say you’re not naive. Listen to what you’re saying; it’s terrifyingly naive.”
“This is not just a difference in power, status, or age. I can’t afford to lose face.”
“Your parents trust my character and work ability, letting you learn from me. Yet I want to marry you? How can I face them? How can I explain it to them?”
Jiang Jingyu said, “There’s no need to explain it to them. People are emotional beings. When you spend time together, feelings naturally develop. They’re not unreasonable, so what’s there to explain?”
“Besides, what’s so embarrassing about it? We both agree. What does it have to do with anyone else?”
Lu Jiaying felt no感动 (gǎndòng - moved/touched) by his promises.
Listening to him, all she felt was his naivety and childishness.
He was young, so he could be foolish, he could be crazy. For her, an older woman, to go crazy with him again would be to court disaster.
“Stop talking. If you keep harping on this, I’ll only have one option left.”
“Hm?”
“To resign and leave Nancheng. I don’t expect to make amends for my mistakes, but I hope not to cause further disaster.”
Hearing her words, the light in Jiang Jingyu’s eyes gradually dimmed, and his arms loosened their grip.
Lu Jiaying finally broke free from his embrace.
She took two steps back, looking at the displeased Jiang Jingyu, suppressing the complex emotions within her.